A new entry in the space tourism sector will allow customers to admire the Earth’s curvature from the comfort of a luxury cabin carried to the upper atmosphere by a massive balloon.
On April 12, Space Perspective unveiled renderings of their lush cabins, which it wants to launch from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center in late 2024. Astoundingly, over 600 tickets have been sold so far, each costing $125,000.
The atmosphere contrasts with its competitors’ white capsules with 1.5 meters (5ft) high windows, dark, purple tones, deep seats, and subtle lighting. The “Space Lounge” within the company’s Neptune capsule features WiFi connectivity and a beverages bar. It is debatable whether or not this fancy capsule lifted by a balloon truly qualifies as spaceflight.
The balloon achieves a height of 20 miles (30 kilometers), far lower than rivals Virgin Galactic, which reaches a height of slightly over 50 miles, and Blue Origin, which breaks the Karman Line, the globally recognized space border, at 62 miles above sea level. Crew Dragons from SpaceX travel even further into space.
However, 20 miles is still a long way above commercial flights, which only reach about six miles in altitude. “We are above 99% of Earth’s atmosphere,” said co-founder Jayne Poynter to AFP, implying that passengers will view the inky darkness of space.
There is no need for special training. The balloon climbs at a leisurely 12 mph (19 km/h), and the company touts itself as a greener, zero-emissions substitute for rocket fuels. Rather than getting hydrogen from fossil fuels, they want to get it from renewable sources.
Space Perspective expects to fly 25 times in its first year, with all seats now sold out. The price for the two-hour ascending, two-hour gliding, and two-hour descending journey, which ends in an ocean splashdown, is much less than Virgin Galactic tickets, which cost $450,000 for a spaceplane ride. Blue Origin’s pricing isn’t disclosed, but they’re expected to be far higher. At the same time, four entrepreneurs who traveled to the International Space Station on a SpaceX ship paid Axiom Space a whopping $55 million each for the privilege.
Poynter highlighted:
“We wanted to find a way that really changed the way people think about spaceflight that makes it much more approachable and accessible.”
Unfortunately, passengers in the Neptune capsule will not experience feelings of weightlessness. In contrast, when the rocket engines are turned off on Virgin’s spaceplane and Blue Origin’s rocket, passengers can unbuckle and float. However, the spacecraft keeps drifting upwards for a few minutes before gravity drags it down. In addition, since the SpaceX spaceships and the International Space Station orbit the Earth, passengers on both enjoy a sense of weightlessness.
