Commercial space tourism moves from science fiction to reality: How far is it from the popularization of space?

Space tourism, once upon a time, was like a plot in a futuristic science fiction movie, inspiring people's deep awe and wonder and igniting the public's passion for exploring the unknown world. In recent years, with the rise of commercial aerospace and technological breakthroughs, space tourism has gradually evolved from the imagination of science fiction works to a commercial service that is within reach.

From suborbital flights to lunar sightseeing, from private space stations to deep space exploration, mankind is moving towards the era of "space civilianization" at an unprecedented speed.

Image source: Blue Origin website

Suborbital tourism: the reality mapping of weightlessness experience and science fiction narrative

Suborbital flight is currently the most technologically mature and commercialized form of space tourism. The flight altitude is usually near the Karman line about 100 kilometers above the ground. Passengers can experience weightlessness for several minutes and overlook the curve of the earth.

The members of the second manned space flight of the Blue Origin "New Shepard" rocket, from left to right, are: Chris Boshuizen, a former NASA engineer and co-founder of the Planetary Laboratory; William Shatner, the actor who played the captain in "Star Trek"; Aubrey Powers, vice president of mission and flight operations of the "New Shepard" rocket; Glen de Vries, co-founder of clinical trial software company Medidata Solutions. Source: Blue Origin website

As early as 2021, Blue Origin carried out its first space tourism rocket launch. Its "New Shepard" spacecraft provided a weightlessness experience through an 11-minute suborbital flight. The cabin is equipped with extra-large portholes, so passengers can take panoramic photos of the earth. So far, it has successfully carried out 9 suborbital space tourism activities and sent 47 tourists into space.

Virgin Galactic's "SpaceShipTwo" launched at the same time adopts the "mothership + daughtership" design and has successfully carried out seven tourist flights.

Polaris Dawn Project Image source: SpaceX website

At the same time, SpaceX has also joined the space tourism industry. In September 2024, SpaceX successfully carried out a space tourism flight called "North Star Dawn Project". Four non-NASA astronauts flew to an apogee of more than 1,400 kilometers above the earth (3 times the altitude of the International Space Station) and conducted the first space tourism spacewalk in history there.

At the same time, SpaceX's Starship system can carry 100 passengers at a time, with a cost of $10 million per launch, which means that SpaceX may one day be able to offer space tourism projects at prices far below current market prices.

Image source: China Science and Technology Aerospace website

China's China Aerospace Corporation announced that its space travel vehicle will make its first flight in 2027, and plans to start manned space tourism in 2028. The space travel vehicle is composed of a single-stage rocket and a tourist cabin. The tourist cabin is equipped with four panoramic windows and can carry seven passengers per flight.

During the 10-minute flight, passengers will cross the Karman line at an altitude of 100 kilometers, experience 3 minutes of weightlessness, and get rid of the earth's gravity. Finally, the tourist cabin will land safely by parachute.

Orbital Tourism: Commercial Space Stations and Long-term Residency

The core goal of orbital tourism is to achieve life in space for several days to weeks, which currently relies on cooperation with the International Space Station (ISS) and emerging commercial space station projects.

Image source: Vast company website

Currently, the American company AxiomSpace has cooperated with SpaceX to successfully send tourists to the International Space Station in 2022, with a single mission costing about US$55 million. During the period at the International Space Station, a 10-day scientific research experience activity was carried out, and passengers assisted in more than 20 scientific experiments, paving the way for Axiom's plan to build a commercial space station.

Concept image of Shelter 1 Source: Vast company website

As early as August this year, the US company Vast will launch the world's first commercial space station "Haven-1", which can provide 80 cubic meters of pressurized volume and support four manned flight missions, each mission accommodating four astronauts for two weeks.

The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft will be used as a means of transporting tourists from Earth to the space station, and Vast's ultimate goal is to use the Starship to launch a large space station with artificial gravity, which is an ambitious goal.

Negative issues that cannot be ignored

Although space tourism shows impressive prospects and opens up a new dimension of experience for mankind, it cannot be ignored that this emerging field also has many potential shortcomings and negative effects.

Stills from the movie "WALL·E"

Environmental impact: Space tourism poses significant challenges to the Earth's environment. The launch of spacecraft and rockets consumes a huge amount of energy, and in the process generates a large amount of air pollutants and noise pollution. These emissions will not only exacerbate global climate change, but also damage the Earth's atmospheric structure and threaten the ecological balance.

Safety hazards: Space travel is still an extremely risky activity. Although a series of safety protocols have been developed, the risk of accidents always exists due to the complexity and unknown nature of the space environment. Once an accident occurs, it often has catastrophic consequences.

Cost threshold: At present, the high cost of space tourism means that only a small number of wealthy people can participate in it. This undoubtedly limits the public's opportunities to experience space tourism and easily triggers social disputes about inequality and elitism.

NASA simulates space debris around the Earth. Image source: NASA

Space debris problem: Every time a spacecraft is launched, it leaves debris in space, which can remain in orbit for many years. As space launches become more frequent, the amount of debris in orbit is growing exponentially. Even if these debris are small in size, they may pose a serious threat to the operational safety of other spacecraft.

Resource consumption: Space travel requires a lot of energy, fuel, materials and other resources. Excessive resource consumption may lead to resource depletion, which will have a long-term negative impact on the earth's ecological environment and the resource utilization of future generations.

Legal gaps: The legal framework for space tourism is still in the development stage. If problems arise, it is unclear who will be held responsible. At the same time, the impact of space tourism activities on existing international space laws and treaties has also aroused widespread concern.

In the face of these problems, the space tourism industry must take safety and sustainability as the core priorities of development, actively learn from past experiences and lessons, and lay a solid foundation for future steady development. This requires continued investment in the research and development of space technology, promoting technological innovation, reducing the cost of space tourism, improving safety, and ensuring that space travel can be accepted and participated by a wider range of people.

Stills from the movie "The Martian"

In the near future, space tourism will no longer be an unattainable dream. Standing in low-Earth orbit and looking back at the blue planet, humans are looking at their coordinates in the universe from a new perspective. When the lunar craters become the backdrop for honeymoon trips and the canyons on Mars echo with the footprints of explorers, space tourism will no longer be the exclusive domain of a few pioneers.

In the more distant future, we may be able to drive advanced spacecraft across the vast interstellar space to appreciate the wonderful landscapes of other star systems and embark on interstellar adventures full of unknowns and surprises. From the cradle of the earth to the civilization of the galaxy, the future of space tourism is full of infinite possibilities, waiting for humans to explore and realize step by step.

Compiled by: Yang Yuxin

Planning: Liu Ying, Zhang Chao, Li Peiyuan, Yang Liu

Reviewer: Fu Changyi, Associate Professor, Nanjing University of Technology

Chairman of the Science Fiction Committee of Jiangsu Science Writers Association