Space Tourism Industry

Spacewalking: New domain of rich as billionaire attempts 1st pvt spacewalk

First came space tourism. Now comes an even bigger thrill for the monied masses: spacewalking. The stage is set for the first private spacewalk Thursday. Tech billionaire Jared Isaacman will pop out of the hatch of his orbiting SpaceX capsule, two days after blasting off from Florida on a chartered flight that lifted him and his crew higher than anyone since NASA's moonwalkers. He partnered with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to buy a series of rocket rides and help develop brand new spacesuits. SpaceX is the first private company to attempt a spacewalk, until now the domain of just 12 countries. There's a reason why it's such a niche and elite group: Spacewalking is considered the most dangerous part of any flight after launch and reentry, and demands extensive training. Spacewalks are a whole different entire ballgame than just strapping into a rocket and riding it, getting some zero-g time and coming back, said retired NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy. Cassidy knows firsthand about the danger

Indian firm aims to launch 'space habitat' by 2027, in talks with SpaceX

Bengaluru-based AkashaLabdhi is designing a space habitat solution to accommodate six to 16 personnel, which it plans to launch by 2027

Jeff Bezos' space flight may have an Indian onboard soon. Key details

SERA, a US-based agency, is planning to offer six seats on a future mission of New Shepard, Blue Origin's reusable suborbital rocket, to citizens from various countries

Boeing to launch astronauts in new capsule, expanding space travel

After years of delays and stumbles, Boeing is finally poised to launch astronauts to the International Space Station for NASA. It's the first flight of Boeing's Starliner capsule with a crew on board, a pair of NASA pilots who will check out the spacecraft during the test drive and a weeklong stay at the space station. NASA turned to US companies for astronaut rides after the space shuttles were retired. Elon Musk's SpaceX has made nine taxi trips for NASA since 2020, while Boeing has managed only a pair of unoccupied test flights. Boeing program manager Mark Nappi wishes Starliner was further along. There's no doubt about that, but we're here now. The company's long-awaited astronaut demo is slated for liftoff Monday night. Provided this tryout goes well, NASA will alternate between Boeing and SpaceX to get astronauts to and from the space station. A look at the newest ride and its shakedown cruise: THE CAPSULE White with black and blue trim, Boeing's Starliner capsule is abou

History set to be made: India's first pvt launchpad readies for takeoff

Agnibaan is a two stage launch vehicle with the capability to carry up to 100 kilo gram payload to an extent of around 700 km to the lower earth orbit

China expands number of countries for travel by its big-spending tourists

China has increased the number of countries that its big-spending tourists can visit by more than 70 following the lifting of its last COVID-19 travel restrictions. The decision comes as international flights to and from the country gradually return to their pre-pandemic levels. China implemented strict lockdowns and draconian travel controls within the country and closed its borders almost entirely after the virus was first detected in the central city of Wuhan in late 2019. Those restrictions began to be lifted late last year, but the government has been hesitant to resume issuing passports and allowing in foreign tourists, as well as giving its citizens the ability to travel abroad. The expanded options for travel began on Thursday. "The government agencies in charge will provide businesses in the tourism sector with the necessary guidance for the implementation," the Foreign Ministry said. At this moment, we would like to remind all outbound tourists to be well-prepared befor

TMS Ep464: Go First airline, risk tourism, microcap stocks, Artemis Accords

Can Go First take off once again? Will the Titan submarine tragedy sink risk tourism? Should you invest in micro-cap stocks? What are Artemis Accords? All answers here

Virgin Galactic Holdings to roll out commercial service from June 27

The flight, called Galactic 01, will include researchers from the Italian Air Force and the National Research Council of Italy, the company said

Bengaluru govt museum exhibits complete replica of Mars Rover Opportunity

If you are curious to know how the Mars Rover Opportunity of US space agency NASA, which traversed through the barren land of the red planet and revealed many secrets about it, then head straight to the Space Technology gallery of the Visvesvaraya Industrial and Technological Museum (VITM) here. The Mars Rover Opportunity model, which was built by the students of Cornell University and kept as exhibit at the VITM, was inaugurated by M Sankaran, Director, UR Rao Satellite Centre of Indian Space Research Organisation on Thursday. The model was initially on display at the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum in Dulles,Virginia, in US, and later exhibited in the US Pavelion during the 2020 World Expo in Dubai. The replica was then received by the American Centre in the US Consulate in Chennai where it was on display from November 2022 to March 2023 before landing at the VITM. US Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Marisa Lago said, "As the United States and India forge ev

Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin sets sight on India's space tourism potential

Industry sources say reusable launch vehicles are key to India's space tourism plan as they will make the entire business economical

ISRO gears up for space tourism takeoff, expects commencement by 2030

Space tourism is no longer a pipe dream of billionaires at least, with more and more private investments set to come in

Indian firm eyes sending tourists near space in capsule by 2025

An Indian firm is planning to ferry tourists near space in a spaceship attached to a unique high-altitude balloon system by 2025. Inspired by Elon Musk's SpaceX, the Mumbai-based Space Aura Aerospace Technology Pvt Ltd company has begun to build a space capsule measuring 10 feet x 8 feet, which can carry six tourists besides the pilot into space at a time. However, the space capsule will remain within 35 km radius above the earth. The company presented a prototype of the space capsule named SKAP 1 at a science exhibition 'Akash Tatva' here, which got great response from scientists and common people alike. The firm has set itself a target of 2025 for beginning its flight into space, Space Aura founder and CEO Akash Porwal told PTI. Two places have been identified in Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh, from where the flight into space can be launched, and a decision in this regard will be taken soon, he said. The company is busy trying to achieve its target with the help of scientists fr

Blue Origin delays May 20 space tourist launch due to vehicle issue

"During our final vehicle check-outs, we observed one of New Shepard's back-up systems was not meeting our expectations for performance," the company said

Japan billionaire Maezawa: Going to space makes you obsessed with Earth

The 46-year-old fashion magnate and art collector in December became the first space tourist on the International Space Station in over a decade

Space industry hopes for exciting 2022 after a forgettable 2021

The Indian space industry is eagerly looking forward to 2022 hoping that it could be an active year as compared to 2021 that is largely a forgettable one.

Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin blasts third private crew into space

Jeff Bezos' rocket company, Blue Origin on Saturday morning (local time) blasted its third private crew into space.This flight marked the third of what Blue Origin hopes will be many space tourism launches, carrying wealthy customers to the edge of space, reported CNN.This is the first time that Blue Origin filled all six seats on its New Shepard rocket and capsule, which is named for Alan Shepard.On the company's two previous flights -- including the July flight that sent Bezos himself to space -- only four of the seats were taken up, reported CNN.The group blasted off aboard Blue Origin's suborbital space tourism rocket at 9:01 am CT from the company's launch facilities near the rural town of Van Horn, Texas and took a supersonic, 10-minute flight that reached more than 60 miles above the Earth's surface before parachuting to a landing.The crew consisted of Good Morning America host Michael Strahan, the daughter of famed astronaut Alan Shepard, and four paying customers on a ...

Bezos loses lawsuit to build lunar lander, wishes success to Musk

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' space venture Blue Origin has lost out on its lawsuit against NASA over a contract to build the space agency's next human lunar lander, and has wished success to Elon Musk

Russian film crew blasts off to make first movie in space: Report

A Russian actor and a film director rocketed to space Tuesday on a mission to make the world's first movie in orbit, a project the Kremlin said will help burnish the nation's space glory. Actor Yulia Peresild and director Klim Shipenko blasted off for the International Space Station in a Russian Soyuz spacecraft together with cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov, a veteran of three space missions. Their Soyuz MS-19 lifted off as scheduled at 1:55 p.m. (0855 GMT) from the Russian space launch facility in Baikonur, Kazakhstan and arrived at the station after about 3 hours. Shkaplerov took manual controls to smoothly dock the spacecraft at the space outpost after a glitch in an automatic docking system. The trio reported they were feeling fine and spacecraft systems were functioning normally. Peresild and Klimenko are to film segments of a new movie titled Challenge, in which a surgeon played by Peresild rushes to the space station to save a crew member who suffers a heart condition. After 12 d

Jeff Bezos' rocket firm Blue Origin accused of toxic culture, lax safety

Blue Origin launched the Amazon founder to the edge of space in July and has another flight planned in October, but the company has experienced other setbacks this year.

Virgin Galactic says US FAA has cleared it for further flights

The company said it was advised by the FAA that corrective actions proposed by Virgin Galactic have been accepted.