New Survey Takes the Pulse of Public Space Travel
FYI,
"New Survey Takes the Pulse of Public Space Travel"
SPACE.com
http://news.yahoo.com/s/space/20060829/sc_space/newsurveytakesthepulseofpublicspacetravel
: A new survey is trying to get to the bottom of what public
: travelers long for and fancy from a journey into space.
: The intent of the survey is help design better space tourism
: packages - be it zipping up to the edge of space on a suborbital
: spree, pulling up to a space hotel in Earth orbit, or looping
: around the Moon.
: Also, the study is crafted to pulse a prospective space traveler's
: view of safety, risk, and bravery required for a person to buckle
: up for blastoff.
: The questions - tagged The Adventurers' Survey - represent a joint
: undertaking by Derek Webber, Director of Spaceport Associates in
: Bethesda, Maryland and Jane Reifert, President of Incredible
: Adventures, Inc., headquartered in Sarasota, Florida.
: It has been four years since Webber directed another effort to
: poll public attitudes regarding space tourism - the Futron/Zogby
: Survey.
: Futron, a Bethesda, Maryland-based decision support consulting
: firm, published a space tourism market study in 2002, based on a
: Zogby International poll of affluent Americans commissioned by
: Futron. The poll judged the level of interest in, and willingness
: to pay for, space tourism experiences among those people with the
: means to plunk down cash for such flights. Futron used the poll
: results to produce a 20-year forecast for consumer demand for
: orbital and suborbital space tourism flights.
: Highlights of that market study included these findings:
: -- The overall space tourism market is very promising, and could
: generate revenues in excess of $1 billion per year by 2021;
: -- Suborbital space tourism will generate the largest demand, with
: the potential for 15,000 passengers and $700 million in revenues
: per year by 2021;
: -- Orbital space tourism, while growing more slowly than its
: suborbital counterpart, will still have up to 60 passengers and
: $300 million in revenues per year by 2021;
: -- Those interested in suborbital space tourism are
: demographically distinct from those interested in orbital tourism.
: Why another space tourism survey?
: "Public perceptions have probably changed since 2002...so it's
: about time! I want to check that the original findings are still
: valid," Webber told SPACE.com. And given what the public has seen
: from the suborbital flights of SpaceShipOne, the rise of Sir
: Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic, as well as the expandable
: vision of Robert Bigelow's orbiting space module concept, the
: timing is good, he said.
: The hope is that survey findings will be of immediate help to the
: industry in designing the first space tourism packages, Webber
: said.
: "As we get closer to liftoff of this new industry sector, space
: adventure planners and investors are facing some important choices
: and they are probably getting a little nervous," Webber said. "A
: successful business plan in this industry needs to faithfully
: reflect how the future public space traveler weighs fun, money and
: risk."
: The survey of space adventurers is keen on looking for answers to
: five questions:
: -- Is there still an untapped market interest for personal space
: travel adventures?
: -- How does the general interest translate into various specific
: options and prices on offer - and the range of options that now
: includes lunar trips?
: -- What preferences, if any, does the public have for various
: architectural design options for the space vehicle being developed
: for the venture?
: -- What are the public attitudes, and price sensitivities, to
: various elements of the space adventure packages being offered
: - like duration, spacewalks, hotels, spaceports, training packages?
: -- Who are the likely travelers, and how do they view risk?
: "When we have analyzed the responses, we'll get some good insight
: into all of these," Webber added. "But this doesn't mean, of
: course, that the work will then be done," he cautioned.
: Jane Reifert, President of Incredible Adventures, said that, in a
: way, the company has been informally surveying its customers since
: the early 1990's - when the group first began offering high-
: altitude flights, zero gravity adventures and hands-on cosmonaut
: training in Russia.
: "As a matter of routine, customers receive a 'report card' upon
: return home, asking them to evaluate the programs and offer
: comments and suggestions. This information is then used internally
: to improve our existing programs and create new adventures,"
: Reifert said.
: By teaming up with Webber, the surveying of customers and website
: visitors is being taken to a next level, Reifert told SPACE.com.
: But settling on a list of questions proved to be not an easy task,
: she said.
: "I wanted to get answers to the questions I'm routinely asked by
: people within the space industry," Reifert continued, "about
: customers of the future."
: Reifert said that her experiences in selling space-related
: programs has provided a foundation for who she thinks those
: customers will be and what they will want. "But I'm the first to
: admit...I could be wrong. The results of this survey will say a
: lot."
: A concern is that the survey questions be presented as clearly as
: possible.
: There's a tendency within the space community to assume
: everyone "speaks space", Reifert asserted. For example, she's not
: convinced everyone knows the difference between suborbital and
: orbital flights. The new survey provides clear definitions and
: photos, so those tallying up survey output can have confidence in
: the choices participants make.
: "We've seen customer wishes and expectations change over the years
: as they become more knowledgeable about our products. In the early
: years, they just wanted to break the sound barrier. They didn't
: particularly care what jet they did it in. Now, customers
: understand the differences in aircraft better and thus have clear
: ideas of what they want and do not want," Reifert said.
: One item of note about the survey is that it is open for
: participation around the world..."since space isn't just a U.S.
: thing," Reifert pointed out. Furthermore, the survey isn't limited
: to gauging just adult interests.
: "We think knowing what youth think and want when it comes to space
: travel is important to future plans," Reifert noted. In addition,
: the survey is not focused on people of a specific income level,
: she said.
: To take a look at the survey, go to:
: http://www.incredible-adventures.com/space-survey/index.html
--
Mark Reiff <markreiff@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
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