Space Future has been on something of a hiatus of late. With the concept of Space Tourism steadily increasing in acceptance, and the advances of commercial space, much of our purpose could be said to be achieved. But this industry is still nascent, and there's much to do. So...watch this space.
Richard Branson, Founder and Chairman of Virgin Atlantic Airways, spoke on the Discovery Channel on May 11 about his plans to offer space trips to the public, which he has mentioned before. "Never has the idea of space travel been more popular and most of us dream that we might just see the Earth from space during our lifetime. The exciting thing about technological development is that it can rapidly make the seemingly impossible become reality and nowhere is that more true than transport."
Recently Alcestis "Cooky" Oberg wrote a great opinion editorial piece on space tourism and commercial space which got national visibility in USA Today newspaper (read by many business travelers). She allowed Keith Cowing at NASA Watch to reprint the article on his web site:
Georgia pilot determined to rocket into aviation history
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution published an article about the pilot for Advent Launch Services. Vaughn Cordle holds 44 world aviation records, all from passenger planes. He wants to be the first civilian pilot to fly into space. Advent's launch vehicle will be named the Mayflower II.
Platforms International Corporation Joins the Growing List of Private Launchers
A new commercial launch contender, Platforms International Corporation, has just put out a press release announcing their new space division. It was mentioned in Yahoo's Business Wire:
Until recently pointedly ignored by the "space establishment", the subject of space tourism continues to get discussed more and more seriously and frequently. In the February 9-15 issue of
Space News it appeared in two separate articles.