when will commercial space travel be available

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The Commercial Space Age Is Here

• Matthew Weinzierl
• Mehak Sarang

In May of 2020, SpaceX made history as the first private company to send humans into space. This marks not only a tremendous technological achievement, but also the first indication that an entirely new “space-for-space” industry — that is, goods and services designed to supply space-bound customers — could be close at hand. In the first stage of this burgeoning economy, private companies must sell to NASA and other government customers, since today, those organizations are the only source of in-space demand. But as SpaceX has demonstrated, private companies now have not just the desire, but also the ability to send people into space. And once we have private citizens in space, SpaceX and other companies will be poised to supply the demand they’ve created, creating a market that could dwarf the current government-led space industry (and eventually, the entire terrestrial economy as well). It’s a huge opportunity — now our task is simply to seize it.

Private space travel is just the beginning.

There’s no shortage of hype surrounding the commercial space industry. But while tech leaders promise us moon bases and settlements on Mars, the space economy has thus far remained distinctly local — at least in a cosmic sense. Last year, however, we crossed an important threshold: For the first time in human history, humans accessed space via a vehicle built and owned not by any government, but by a private corporation with its sights set on affordable space settlement . It was the first significant step towards building an economy both in space and for space. The implications — for business, policy, and society at large — are hard to overstate.

• MW Matthew Weinzierl is the Joseph and Jacqueline Elbling Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School and a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. His teaching and research focus on the design of economic policy and the economics and business of space.
• MS Mehak Sarang is a Research Associate at Harvard Business School and the Lunar Exploration Projects Lead for the MIT Space Exploration Initiative.

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Commercial space travel is here. Now what?

Space expert Chris Daehnick talks about how the budding commercial space industry goes beyond tourism, and why private companies are leading the charge into space.

• 2020 Telly Award 2021 Webby Award

"We as humans have looked up at the stars as long as we've been conscious. And the idea of getting closer to them is something people dream about." That's Chris Daehnick, an associate partner with McKinsey , talking about the rise of commercial space travel, specifically the budding industry of space tourism.

Space travel may be a dream shared by many, but the journey to the stars as a civilian is currently accessible only to the ultra-wealthy few. Jeff Bezos , Amazon founder and the richest person in the world, and Richard Branson , British billionaire and founder of Virgin Galactic, ventured into low-Earth orbit over the summer and are beginning to offer tickets to space on their respective rockets for an exorbitant price. 

Daehnick leads an analytics team at McKinsey that focuses on aerospace and defense, using software that forecasts launches and satellite production, among other things. In his article  Wall Street to Mission Control: Can space tourism pay off? , published in The Wall Street Journal, he argues that the commercialization of space isn't just about sending the elite on extraterrestrial excursions. 

"But what's really new, in the last five years or so," Daehnick says, "is this rise of completely private enterprises to provide trips to orbit or close to orbit, which would be done other than for research or scientific purposes."

Instead, he continues, the commercial space industry is about transitioning the space industry from one solely supported by the government to something self-sufficient, with private enterprises investing in rockets, equipment and experiments in space. 

Up until the early 2000s, government-funded agencies, including NASA and the European Space Agency, largely sponsored space travel, research and development. Now these agencies are increasingly looking to the private sector to assist, or more often, lead the development of innovative technologies for missions deeper into the final frontier. 

Daehnick notes that it's unclear whether there's a real market for space tourism, because of its inaccessibility. But the overarching pull to pursue commercial opportunities in space is driven by the awe-inspiring attraction of space itself. 

"Sputnik, the first launch of an artificial Earth satellite, energized this huge wave of science and math education in the US," Daehnick says. "And that in turn spawned a lot of people who went on to be entrepreneurs or do technical things. You could argue that many of the founders of those companies were probably, in some way, inspired by that initial energy."

Daehnick spoke with CNET's Sophia Fox-Sowell, sharing a wealth of insights into the growing commercial space industry and how space tourism could impact the economy. Watch their full conversation in the video above.

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Commercial Space Travel Is Closer Than Ever

By Ruaridh Nicoll

All products featured on Condé Nast Traveler are independently selected by our editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Jean-François Clervoy, a French astronaut who has spent almost a month in space, holds up a globe of water, releases it, and lets it spin away. Blue as an ocean, it resembles a small Earth as it rotates past my nose. I reach for it, and as my head tilts toward the floor, I see the globe shatter.

This small moment is one step along the way toward realizing an idea that for decades has existed only in the realm of fantasy: commercial space travel. I haven't reached the final frontier yet, but I am preparing for it. I'm a trainee space tourist, on a parabolic “Zero-G” flight in a converted Airbus A310 over the sea near Arcachon, on France's Atlantic coast, which is part of a four-day astronaut-training course run by French “space experience” company Orbite. Here attendees participate in a kind of space boot camp, hopping on zero-gravity flights that offer the sensation of weightlessness; studying rocket science; and taking part in virtual-reality simulations that aim to re-create the experience of flying in some of the launch vehicles now hitting the market—one might go to the edge of space aboard a vessel based on Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo or circumnavigate the moon on something akin to SpaceX's Starship, the low-orbit “cruise liner” that carried out flight trials in Texas this past summer.

Tech entrepreneurs Nicolas Gaume and Jason Andrews founded Orbite in 2019 so that people could get a taste of the experience before dropping their fortunes on the space vacations now finally becoming available to the world's most affluent travelers. It was only in April, after all, that four astronauts hired SpaceX to get them to the International Space Station, or ISS, for a 17-day stay, its first all-private visit. The trip was managed by Axiom Space, a Houston-based company of predominantly ex-NASA staff that is building the world's first commercial space station, due to open in early 2024. Meanwhile, Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin both flew commercially for the first time last year, while new operators like Stellar Frontiers are connecting private clients with space experiences.

Orbite's program offers a preview of what such trips might entail—but through a hyper-luxe lens. Gaume, by his own account, made and lost a billion in computer games by the time he was 30. His family owns some of the top hotels in the quietly chic corner of southwest France I'm visiting, including the Philippe Starck–designed La Co(o)rniche hotel , where my fellow attendees and I are staying. The company, which has also operated the program in Orlando, Florida , has commissioned Starck to design a permanent training complex, to open in an as-yet-undisclosed U.S. location in 2024. “You have to have a certain amount of training to be able to go through an experience in space,” Gaume tells me. “But what we really want is for you to have fun and enjoy every bit of it, with an experience that focuses not just on the technical but also the mental and spiritual. And that is different from what is available in the traditional training facility.”

Therefore meals feature oysters, crab, and lobster, washed down with pastis and 1969 Mumm Champagne—which seems most un-spacelike, until you learn that chefs from Alain Ducasse's team have already created a high-end gastronomic experience for astronauts at ISS, featuring tinned blue lobster and quinoa. We're joined for one meal by Lionel Suchet, head of the French space agency, who notes that while the arrival of space tourism isn't a surprise, the “velocity of change is very, very quick.”

Another training module involves a turn in a tiny two-seat GB1 GameBird, the very latest in aerobatic aircraft. At Arcachon's local airport, I'm met by pilot Benoît Buffiere, whose role is to re-create the g-forces of a rocket launch. In a plane the size of a race car, we fly along the coast to find a bit of swamp, above which we perform loops, rolls, and stall turns. Finally he performs a ruade, a move in which the tiny aircraft goes cartwheeling through the sky. I feel like one of those astronauts spinning out into the inky depths forever.

Afterward, I stagger down to the edge of the sea and along a great dune. Beginning to climb, like some lost soul on Mars, I slip on the sand. I roll over; above me the stars are beginning to come out in the darkening sky. Looking up, I realize that while space may be infinite, there's little room for cynicism. I am a believer. I want to go up.

Other orbital outfitters

Space Perspective: Beginning in 2024, passengers with this Cape Canaveral–based venture can enjoy hours of gentle floating—plus a cocktail bar and 360-degree views—in the Spaceship Neptune, a carbon-neutral capsule carried to 100,000 feet beneath a balloon. 

SpaceX: Elon Musk hopes to take his company's Starship rocket to Mars, but not before ferrying people to the moon. NASA has hired it for just this purpose in 2025. 

Virgin Galactic: Richard Branson's company is taking reservations for 90-minute flights, set to launch by the end of the year, which feature a Mach 3 boost into space from New Mexico's Spaceport America, followed by several minutes of reportedly life-changing views of Earth's curvature.

Blue Origin: After rising 62 miles above the West Texas wilderness in the New Shepard vessel, which began operating last year soon after founder Jeff Bezos's inaugural flight, astrotourists briefly experience weightlessness at the edge of the infinite darkness. 

All listings featured on Condé Nast Traveler are independently selected by our editors. If you book something through our links, we may earn an affiliate commission. This article appeared in the September/October 2022 issue of Condé Nast Traveler. Subscribe to the magazine   here .

Read more about the Future of Travel here .

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The Future of Space Tourism Is Now. Well, Not Quite.

From zero-pressure balloon trips to astronaut boot camps, reservations for getting off the planet — or pretending to — are skyrocketing. The prices, however, are still out of this world.

By Debra Kamin

Ilida Alvarez has dreamed of traveling to space since she was a child. But Ms. Alvarez, a legal-mediation firm owner, is afraid of flying, and she isn’t a billionaire — two facts that she was sure, until just a few weeks ago, would keep her fantasy as out of reach as the stars. She was wrong.

Ms. Alvarez, 46, and her husband, Rafael Landestoy, recently booked a flight on a 10-person pressurized capsule that — attached to a massive helium-filled balloon — will gently float to 100,000 feet while passengers sip champagne and recline in ergonomic chairs. The reservation required a $500 deposit; the flight itself will cost $50,000 and last six to 12 hours.

“I feel like it was tailor-made for the chickens like me who don’t want to get on a rocket,” said Ms. Alvarez, whose flight, organized by a company called World View , is scheduled to depart from the Grand Canyon in 2024.

Less than a year after Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson kicked off a commercial space race by blasting into the upper atmosphere within weeks of each other last summer, the global space tourism market is skyrocketing, with dozens of companies now offering reservations for everything from zero-pressure balloon trips to astronaut boot camps and simulated zero-gravity flights. But don’t don your spacesuit just yet. While the financial services company UBS estimates the space travel market will be worth $3 billion by 2030, the Federal Aviation Administration has yet to approve most out-of-this-world trips, and construction has not started on the first space hotel. And while access and options — not to mention launchpads — are burgeoning, space tourism remains astronomically expensive for most.

First, what counts as space travel?

Sixty miles (about 100 kilometers) above our heads lies the Kármán line, the widely accepted aeronautical boundary of the earth’s atmosphere. It’s the boundary used by the Féderátion Aéronautique Internationale, which certifies and controls global astronautical records. But many organizations in the United States, including the F.A.A. and NASA, define everything above 50 miles to be space.

Much of the attention has been focused on a trio of billionaire-led rocket companies: Mr. Bezos’ Blue Origin , whose passengers have included William Shatner; Mr. Branson’s Virgin Galactic , where tickets for a suborbital spaceflight start at $450,000; and Elon Musk’s SpaceX , which in September launched an all-civilian spaceflight, with no trained astronauts on board. Mr. Branson’s inaugural Virgin Galactic flight in 2021 reached about 53 miles, while Blue Origin flies above the 62-mile mark. Both are eclipsed by SpaceX, whose rockets charge far deeper in to the cosmos, reaching more than 120 miles above Earth.

Balloons, like those operated by World View, don’t go nearly as high. But even at their maximum altitude of 18 or 19 miles, operators say they float high enough to show travelers the curvature of the planet, and give them a chance to experience the overview effect — an intense perspective shift that many astronauts say kicks in when you view Earth from above.

Now, how to get there …

Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, which are both licensed for passenger space travel by the F.A.A., are open for ticket sales. (Blue Origin remains mum on pricing.) Both companies currently have hundreds or even thousands of earthlings on their wait lists for a whirl to the edge of space. SpaceX charges tens of millions of dollars for its further-reaching flights and is building a new facility in Texas that is currently under F.A.A. review.

Craig Curran is a major space enthusiast — he’s held a reserved seat on a Virgin Galactic flight since 2011 — and the owner of Deprez Travel in Rochester, N.Y. The travel agency has a special space travel arm, Galactic Experiences by Deprez , through which Mr. Curran sells everything from rocket launch tickets to astronaut training.

Sales in the space tourism space, Mr. Curran acknowledges, “are reasonably difficult to make,” and mostly come from peer-to-peer networking. “You can imagine that people who spend $450,000 to go to space probably operate in circles that are not the same as yours and mine,” he said.

Some of Mr. Curran’s most popular offerings include flights where you can experience the same stomach-dropping feeling of zero gravity that astronauts feel in space, which he arranges for clients via chartered, specialized Boeing 727s that are flown in parabolic arcs to mimic being in space. Operators including Zero G also offer the service; the cost is around $8,200.

You can almost count the number of completed space tourist launches on one hand — Blue Origin has had four; SpaceX, two. Virgin Galactic, meanwhile, on Thursday announced the launch of its commercial passenger service, previously scheduled for late 2022, was delayed until early 2023. Many of those on waiting lists are biding their time before blastoff by signing up for training. Axiom Space, which contracts with SpaceX, currently offers NASA-partnered training at Houston’s Johnson Space Center. Virgin Galactic, which already offers a “customized Future Astronaut Readiness program” at its Spaceport America facility in New Mexico, is also partnering with NASA to build a training program for private astronauts.

Would-be space tourists should not expect the rigor that NASA astronauts face. Training for Virgin Galactic’s three-hour trips is included in the cost of a ticket and lasts a handful of days; it includes pilot briefings and being “fitted for your bespoke Under Armour spacesuit and boots,” according to its website.

Not ready for a rocket? Balloon rides offer a less hair-raising celestial experience.

“We go to space at 12 miles an hour, which means that it’s very smooth and very gentle. You’re not rocketing away from earth,” said Jane Poynter, a co-founder and co-chief executive of Space Perspective , which is readying its own touristic balloon spaceship, Spaceship Neptune. If all goes according to plan, voyages are scheduled to begin departing from Florida in 2024, at a cost of $125,000 per person. That’s a fraction of the price tag for Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, but still more than double the average annual salary of an American worker.

Neither Space Perspective nor World View has the required approval yet from the F.A.A. to operate flights.

Unique implications

Whether a capsule or a rocket is your transport, the travel insurance company battleface launched a civilian space insurance plan in late 2021, a direct response, said chief executive Sasha Gainullin, to an increase in space tourism interest and infrastructure. Benefits include accidental death and permanent disablement in space and are valid for spaceflights on operators like SpaceX, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, as well as on stratospheric balloon rides. They’ve had many inquiries, Mr. Gainullin said, but no purchases just yet.

“Right now it’s such high-net-worth individuals who are traveling to space, so they probably don’t need insurance,” he said. “But for quote-unquote regular travelers, I think we’ll see some takeups soon.”

And as the industry grows, so perhaps will space travel’s impact on the environment. Not only do rocket launches have immense carbon footprints, even some stratospheric balloon flights have potentially significant implications: World View’s balloons are powered by thousands of cubic meters of helium, which is a limited resource . But Ted Parson, a professor of environmental law at the University of California, Los Angeles, said that space travel’s environmental impact is still dwarfed by civil aviation. And because space travel is ultra-niche, he believes it’s likely to stay that way.

“Despite extensive projections, space tourism is likely to remain a tiny fraction of commercial space exploration,” he said. “It reminds me of tourism on Mt. Everest. It’s the indulgence of very rich people seeking a transcendent, once-in-a-lifetime experience, and the local environmental burden is intense.”

Stay a while?

In the future, space enthusiasts insist, travelers won’t be traveling to space just for the ride. They’ll want to stay a while. Orbital Assembly Corporation, a manufacturing company whose goal is to colonize space, is currently building the world’s first space hotels — two ring-shaped properties that will orbit Earth, called Pioneer Station and Voyager Station. The company, quite optimistically, projects an opening date of 2025 for Pioneer Station, with a capacity of 28 guests. The design for the larger Voyager Station , which they say will open in 2027, promises villas and suites, as well as a gym, restaurant and bar. Both provide the ultimate luxury: simulated gravity. Axiom Space , a space infrastructure company, is currently building the world’s first private space station; plans include Philippe Starck-designed accommodations for travelers to spend the night.

Joshua Bush, chief executive of travel agency Avenue Two Travel , has sold a handful of seats on upcoming Virgin Galactic flights to customers. The market for space travel (and the sky-high prices that come with it), he believes, will evolve much like civilian air travel did.

“In the beginning of the 20th century, only very affluent people could afford to fly,” he said. “Just as we have Spirit and Southwest Airlines today, there will be some sort of equivalent of that in space travel, too. Hopefully within my lifetime.”

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Space Technology Investments: The Future of Space Tourism

The ventures into outer space were once the exclusive domain of government agencies. Now, the landscape is fast changing, thanks to private companies that are making significant strides towards making space tourism a reality. With this new industry taking shape, investment opportunities are emerging and the future of space tourism shows immense promise.

Key Highlights 

• The market for space tourism could reach $4 billion by 2030 
• Blue Origin, SpaceX, and Virgin Galactic lead the charge when it comes to taking the first tourists into space 
• Potential decreases in the costs of space travel could lead to an accelerated growth of the space tourism industry
• OurCrowd helps to fund multiple promising space technology start-ups, such as: Edgybees , Axiom Space , and the Balerion Space Ventures Fund .

What Is Space Tourism? 

Space tourism, in simple terms, is travel beyond Earth's atmosphere for recreational purposes. It signifies the next evolution of travel, offering private citizens the unique opportunity to view Earth from an entirely new perspective and experience the thrill of weightlessness and space exploration. This nascent industry is facilitating not only transportation to space but also space accommodation in orbital hotels; a symbol of technological advancements and scientific discovery.

What Is the Market Potential of the Space Tourism Industry? 

Recent estimates suggest an extraordinary economic potential for the commercial space travel industry, with significant growth expected over the next decade. A report by UBS indicates that the market for space tourism could reach $4 billion annually by 2030. 1 Another report from Morgan Stanley predicts that the global space technology industry could generate revenue of $1 trillion or more in 2040. 2  

How to Invest in Commercial Space Travel? 

Investors can put their money into commercial space travel either by investing in publicly traded companies or by backing startups and other pre-IPO businesses that show a lot of promise for future growth. 

Investing can involve taking positions in established aerospace companies that are expanding into space tourism, or startups focusing purely on this industry. 

Keep in mind that while investing in the stock market is a viable way to build your position in an industry, future-facing markets such as space tourism revolve around new, promising businesses that aren’t likely to go public shortly. Being able to acquire stocks in promising, pre-IPO companies that push the boundaries of what’s possible in the industry is a chance at becoming a major shareholder of the next “big thing” before the majority of investors catch on. This is exactly the kind of opportunity that OurCrowd provides our partners with. 

You don’t need to buy shares of tourism-specific companies to build a position in this industry. Investing in businesses that support space tourism, such as companies developing technologies for space vehicles, spaceports, or training services for future astronauts. 

OurCrowd is full of such opportunities. For instance, Axiom Space has already become one of the most sought-after companies for manufacturing complex space station modules, and Edgybees is deploying AI to vastly improve the accuracy of satellite imagery, a crucial component of ensuring the safety and success of any space tourism venture. By becoming an OurCrowd member, you’ll be able to invest in these companies, and many more like them easily and effortlessly.

The Leading Space Tourism Companies 

Currently, a handful of innovative companies are propelling the commercial space industry forward. It’s worth noting that they already have massive amounts of capital at their disposal, with each of the three leaders described below being created by some of the world’s most successful entrepreneurs. 

Blue Origin

Founded by Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Blue Origin aims to make space accessible for everyone. Their primary initiative is the New Shepard, a rocket designed to take passengers to the edge of space, offering them a few minutes of weightlessness before returning to Earth. With its successful uncrewed test flights already conducted, they're well on their journey toward actualizing consumer space travel. 

SpaceX 

SpaceX, Elon Musk's brainchild, revolutionizes space technology with its advanced rockets and spacecraft. While they've already successfully sent astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS), SpaceX's grand plan is interplanetary travel starting with Mars. Their spacecraft, Starship, is currently under development and is expected to carry out various missions including carrying tourists on round-the-moon trips. Their ambitious goals have made them one of the most exciting players in the market.

Virgin Galactic 

Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic is harnessing the power of science and innovation to create unique travel experiences. Their spaceship, VSS Unity, has already achieved multiple test flights involving crewed space travel. The company has also begun taking reservations for commercial passenger flights at $200,000+ per ticket, signifying its transition from development to a commercial operation.

Factors Driving the Growth of Space Tourism 

The space tourism sector has been making strides in recent years. Although there’s still a long way to go until fully operational commercial space tours become available, the following growth drivers currently contribute to making this vision a reality. 

Technological Advancements in the Industry 

Rapid technological advancements have profoundly impacted the growth of the space tourism industry. Improved rocket technology allows not only for safer and more reliable travel but also for the reuse of rockets, which significantly cuts back on costs. Innovations in fuel efficiency, navigation systems, cabin design, and safety measures have all played a part in making space travel more accessible.

Additionally, advancements in digital technology have enhanced simulation training for passengers, ensuring they are adequately prepared for their journey into space. Traditional training regimens have been replaced or supplemented with virtual reality simulations that mimic the conditions passengers face during real-life space travel.

Decreasing Costs of Space Travel 

Until recently, space travel was a far-fetched concept for many due to its high costs. However, with advancements in technology and economies of scale brought about by increased production, the cost of reaching space has been gradually decreasing. This drop in cost has been instrumental in opening up opportunities for commercial space tourism activities.

Lower costs not only make space tourism more commercially viable but also facilitate a greater frequency of trips. As the accessibility of journeys to space rises, the industry appeals to a larger segment of consumers looking to satisfy their curiosity about the cosmos beyond our planet.

Of course, initially, space tourism will be affordable only for the wealthiest people on Earth. However, if air travel is anything to go by, we can expect major cost reductions in space travel in the coming decades. 

Prospects and Opportunities for Investment in Space Tourism 

Space tourism presents a cornucopia of exciting investment opportunities that promise significant returns.

Human Habitats in Space – A Potential Venture 

One promising venture is the development of human habitats in space. Although this idea may sound like a sci-fi novel concept, it is a pursuit that established aerospace corporations and ambitious startups are earnestly exploring. Picture luxury hotels orbiting Earth, offering tourists an unmatched glimpse of the cosmos and the blue planet. Investments in such ventures are not only likely to reap hefty financial rewards but also pioneer the frontier for human settlements in space.

Impact of Emerging Technologies like VR/AR in Space Tourism

Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) have huge potential to revolutionize the tourism industry, including space tourism. These technologies can provide immersive experiences for passengers, delivering a taste of space before they even leave Earth. It can also play a crucial role in training tourists for potential physical and psychological challenges during the trip. Therefore, investing in these technologies can open up lucrative doors for state-of-the-art training simulations or pre-trip experiences.

Collaboration Opportunities with Established Aerospace Firms

For investors keen on entering this burgeoning market, collaboration with existing aerospace firms could be an attractive prospect. These firms possess expertise, resources, and existing infrastructures that new entrants into the market would benefit from cooperating or partnering with. Such partnerships could lower entry barriers for newcomers, speed up project timelines, and reduce potential risks.

Invest in Promising SpaceTech Companies With OurCrowd 

At OurCrowd, we help fund multiple promising space technology start-ups, allowing you to break into the industry by investing in companies before they even go public. The Balerion Space Ventures Fund is one such example. With us, you have the chance to get your foot in the door of the rapidly growing space technology industry before the vast majority of investors catch on.

Join OurCrowd and explore our unique investment opportunities.

Become an Investor Today!

Frequently Asked Questions 

When will commercial space travel be available.

Commercial space travel is an exciting frontier that we're steadily approaching. Companies like SpaceX, Virgin Galactic, and Blue Origin are actively investing in technology to make space tourism a reality. While Virgin Galactic has already started offering spots for suborbital space flights, their services are currently only available to a limited number of high-paying customers. SpaceX aims to send tourists around the moon by 2025 and is planning further manned missions to Mars. It's hard to give an exact timeline, but industry experts predict that affordable and regular commercial space travel will become a reality within the next 10-20 years. 

How safe and feasible is space tourism as an investment opportunity? 

Investing in space tourism is still considered speculative but with promising potential. Any space-related venture carries an inherent risk—the technology needed to reach and operate safely in space is complex and expensive. However, the potential payoff if space tourism becomes mainstream could be immense. Many investors view this as a formative time in the commercialization of space, similar to the early days of internet startups. Companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin have shown considerable progress, suggesting a future where space tourism becomes commonplace. As with all investments, potential investors should carefully consider their risk tolerance and do extensive research before investing. 

What advancements can we anticipate in space technology that could impact tourism? 

The advancements in space technology are broad, each driving us closer to easily accessible outer space travel. Looking forward, we will see improvements in rocket reusability, which will significantly reduce costs associated with launch—and hence passenger tickets. Scientists are also investigating different propulsion systems like nuclear thermal engines for fast transportation to far-flung destinations like Mars. Innovative designs for habitable modules are being conceptualized for comfortable stays in low-earth orbit or moon hotels. Advancements are also expected in spacesuit technology for civilian use so that tourists can enjoy extravehicular activities. Lastly, improvements in communication technology will keep space tourists well-connected with Earth, easing fears and ensuring safety.

• https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/21/ubs-says-space-tourism-could-be-a-4b-market-by-2030-how-to-play-it.html
• https://www.morganstanley.com/ideas/investing-in-space

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To the Moon, and Beyond: The Realities of Commercial Space Travel

In 2020, the billionaire space race was in full swing. Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk were vying to send everyday astronauts into low orbit for the first time. Each of the billionaires successfully launched at least once, and Bezos and Branson were even passengers aboard their own businesses’ rocket ships. Comercial space travel was reaching new heights, and the momentum appeared unstoppable, at least for a time.

Since then, the aftereffects of the global coronavirus pandemic have had noticeably dampened our outlook on space travel: many are less interested in hearing about Blue Origin’s latest design features, and instead are more concerned with domestic events unfolding here on earth. Among these, the war in Ukraine and, as a byproduct, the recent news that Russia has pulled out of the international space station, would seem to further distance us from the final frontier.

However, in recent days, NASA’s ambitions to land on the moon once again with its Artemis mission have recaptured the public imagination for space travel. Although NASA’s initial SLS rocket test recently failed to launch, a second attempt has now been announced for September 27.

If commercial space travel into Earth’s orbit–or even to the moon and beyond–does eventually become a possibility there will still be significant challenges for individuals looking to buy their ticket to the final frontier. Here are just a few of the kinds of issues we will be looking at in the decades ahead.

Costs and Resources

It’s easy to get swept up in the fervor for space travel and believe that we’ll all be living the Jetson lifestyle by the end of the decade. But space travel still requires massive amounts of money, planning, and resources. Even the ever-optimistic Elon Musk puts the minimum cost of space travel at $10 million per flight.

In an interview, Musk stated that the “cost efficiency of SpaceX is the best in history,” and it is “designed to be fully reusable.” This means that, according to Musk’s quick math, the cost of SpaceX is around 5-10% of the Saturn V project (the last rocket to send humans to the moon).

Musk also revealed that significant planning and administrative approval are needed to send rocket ships into and beyond low orbit. The Federal Aviation Administration will need to review SpaceX’s request for space travel and will account for environmental factors and human interests.

The organization has already caught some flack for causing damage to local ecosystems and displacing residents when SpaceX obtained Boca Chica beach in Texas. As resident Mary McConnaughey explained, “They’re here to stay and they want us to leave.” Dealing with disgruntled locals may seem like a trivial matter compared to the boundless cosmos above our heads. But, failing to work collaboratively with the folks here on earth is a genuine hurdle with which all space travelers must contend.

Global Collaboration on Space Travel

A few years ago, space travel seemed to be a beacon of hope for everyone who wanted to see nations work more on collaborative efforts than divisive ones. However, recent news that Russia has pulled out of the space station project has dampened optimism and thrown a wrench in collaborative plans.

Of course, global collaboration for space travel isn’t completely necessary. Independent governmental organizations and billionaires may thrust us into the future. However, a lack of international collaboration will likely slow the space race down rather than speed it up — as scientists will have to guard space-related secrets rather than work in open transparency.

The International Space Station does look set to wind down post-2024. In the meantime, it continues to prove that collaboration is necessary for the kinds of tests and experiments needed to solve the realities of space travel. Even Russia, which positions itself as a global powerhouse, doesn’t have the means to create a space station of its own.

Former ISS commander, Dr. Leroy Chaio, explains, “They [Russia] don’t have the money to build their own station” and will be left with no access to a space station without the ISS. This will further compound collaborative space travel issues, as the European Space Agency has already ended collaboration with the Russian Roskosmos project.

Things could, theoretically, get worse if collaboration turned into a competition. Space travel could be susceptible to cyber war as Nation State Actors exploit vulnerabilities. Governmental agencies and corporations will have to use AI to detect hackers and malicious activities in real-time. AI-led behavior detection may have to prevent bad actors from gaining access to rocketships and ensure that passengers have a safe living and working environment in space.

Life in Space

When we think of space travel, most people imagine floating through hallways, eating dehydrated dinners, and staring into the void for hours on end. All of these activities underline a less-thought-of reality: life in space would be lonely.

Engineering Nanotubes for Future Tech That Will Be As Tiny as An Atom

Almost all astronauts describe their first journey into space as a life-altering experience. However, that doesn’t mean that the folks who live and work beyond the earth’s surface won’t fall foul of burnout. The myth that, in 1972, astronauts at SkyLab went on strike due to ignored requests to lighten their workload has now been proven false. But, the story is an important reminder that burnout is real and can affect us all.

Offering professional social support can prevent loneliness and burnout in space. Social care specialists will be able to help passengers and staff avoid excessive stress and illness by listening to the human issues that folks in space experience. A little pre-planned compassion may go a long way for folks who encounter the enigmatic cosmos for the first time.

Of course, while mental stressors like isolation and confinement might necessitate solutions such as prescribed social time , there are also physical effects that come with living in space — and some of them are downright harmful. Space radiation means suits and structures need sufficient shielding to mitigate cancer risks, while prolonged exposure to low-gravity and weightlessness can lead to muscle and bone density deterioration as well as kidney stones. Fortunately, modern technology helps astronauts monitor and solve these issues with relative ease.

The Path Forward

Significant hurdles still stand in the way of frequent, accessible space travel. As recent world events have shown, costs associated with spaceflight can quickly become an issue, and international politics may stifle progress. If the general public ever reaches space, they’ll need professional social support, and sophisticated software to ensure their travels into the final frontier are managed as safely as possible.

All this taken into consideration, space travel “for the rest of us” is nonetheless slowly becoming a reality — even if that reality is reserved, for now, for billionaire producers of 21st century space technologies, and the similarly wealthy passengers willing to pay the steep prices to tag along. In any case, SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Virgin Galactic have given us hope that many more of us could one day be given an opportunity to take a flight into low orbit, or perhaps even to further distant locales beyond our planet.

Adrian Johansen is a freelance writer whose work focuses on business, tech and marketing. She is especially passionate about issues related to accessibility and sustainability. You can read more of her work at her website .

clock This article was published more than  2 years ago

Companies are commercializing outer space. Do government programs still matter?

For now, national governments control the rules — and much of the funding.

2021 was a big year for private companies and space travel, and 2022 will probably be just as busy. Last year, three companies — SpaceX, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic — achieved key feats in space travel previously reserved to countries. They transported astronauts to the International Space Station, flew space enthusiasts into space , delivered cargo to low Earth orbit and developed reusable booster rockets.

In November, Elon Musk announced that his company’s Starship project may launch as early as this month. Developed by SpaceX, the Starship system is seen by many as a game-changer for space travel and exploration . When operational, the fully reusable transport system will be capable of carrying up to 100 people to Mars , marking the next step in the commercialization of outer space.

Will commercial ventures replace national governments in space travel and exploration? My research suggests it is not very likely. While private companies have made considerable strides in popularizing space, national governments dictate the rules and provide much of the funding, securing their central role in space endeavors.

Russia proved it can shoot down a satellite. Does this make space less secure?

How important is the commercial space sector?

Over the last 15 years, commercial activity in space more than tripled, growing from $110 billion in 2005 to nearly $357 billion in 2020. Commercial activity in 2020 accounted for about 80 percent of the estimated $447 billion global space economy that year. Morgan Stanley projects that the sector will rocket to more than $1 trillion by 2040 , with growth concentrated in the commercial space sector.

The modern idea of space travel is rooted in private aspirations , dating back to scientists and engineers such as Robert Goddard , Herman Oberth , Konstantin Tsiolkovsky and Robert Esnault-Pelterie , all considered among the founding fathers of modern rocketry and astronautics. When space exploration proved possible, governments monopolized space activities throughout the 1950s to 1970s.

Commercial space operations kicked off in 1962 with the launch of the first transatlantic communication satellite, Telstar 1 . In the United States, the Communications Satellite Act of 1962 affirmed the right of private companies to own and operate commercial satellites. Other major milestones include the Commercial Space Launch Act in 1984 , a more independent U.S. Office of Commercial Space Transportation and the 2015 US SPACE Act aimed at encouraging the commercial exploration and exploitation of space.

This gradual deregulation in the United States resulted in tremendous growth of commercial space initiatives. The first privately funded rocket, the Conestoga , was launched in 1982 by Space Services. In 2004, the first private, suborbital human spaceflight took place on board SpaceShipOne . In 2012, SpaceX, a private company, began transporting cargo to and from the International Space Station. And in 2020, SpaceX flew American astronauts from U.S. soil for the first time since 2011 , when NASA’s space shuttle missions ended.

Commercial space ventures picked up in 2021

Commercial ventures in space made global headlines last year when SpaceX flew two additional space station missions: Crew-2 and Crew-3 , and launched Inspiration4 , the first all-civilian mission to orbit Earth. Virgin Galactic launched two suborbital human spaceflights from Spaceport America, and Blue Origin conducted two spaceflights close to the 62-mile Kármán line , demarcating the beginning of outer space (Jeff Bezos, Blue Origin’s founder, owns The Washington Post).

Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin announced additional spaceflights , while SpaceX is preparing to go to the moon , Mars and beyond . NASA partnered with Blue Origin, Nanoracks and Northrop Grumman to develop commercial destinations in low-earth orbit. Bigelow , Nanoracks and Axiom Space are designing human habitats in space; Maxar and Northrop Grumman are working on the future Gateway lunar space station, Orbital Assembly plans to open the first space hotel in 2027, and Japan’s Obayashi Corp. aims to create a space elevator by 2050.

Why the commercial space sector won’t replace governments’ role

Three factors help explain why the role of national space initiatives will continue. First, countries dictate the rules in space. The 1967 Outer Space Treaty , which provides the basic legal framework of international space law, gives countries full responsibility (Article 6), liability (Article 7) and ownership (Article 8) of any commercial entity and object in space. Governments have written and signed into effect current space laws, and this means governments will continue to have primacy in space affairs. While companies may operate in space, the current system remains centered around national governments.

What did China test in space, exactly, and why?

Second, national governments continue to play a major role in commercial space activities , often by providing substantial funding. Under NASA’s 2008 Commercial Resupply Services , for example, the U.S. agency awarded $5.9 billion in the first round of commercial resupply contracts, and up to $14 billion in the second. And under its 2011 Commercial Crew Program , NASA invested billions of dollars in a number of companies , with the goal of developing a safe and reliable U.S. commercial crew space transportation capability.

NASA also funds a wide range of other commercial space initiatives , but there is little public information detailing exactly how much commercial partners invest in these joint ventures. In 2012, NASA Associate Administrator Bill Gerstenmaier acknowledged that “ 80-90 percent of the funding for ‘commercial’ crew is from the government, not the companies.” More recent reports suggest that the government’s investment share in commercial launches has changed little, at 77.6 percent .

A third factor is federal deregulation, which helped U.S. commercial space activities to flourish and to dominate. For instance, in 2020, out of 114 total launch attempts , 38 were purely commercial; U.S. companies conducted 23 of these launch attempts, or 61 percent. In addition to launch services, the U.S. commercial space sector similarly leads in other areas , including satellite and spacecraft manufacturing, on-orbit servicing missions and human spaceflight.

In the absence of deregulation in other countries, commercial space ventures are unlikely to develop along similar lines. While commercial space sectors in countries like Russia and China have expanded, growth has been limited and often contingent upon substantial government investments.

Space will remain a national prerogative

Commercial space companies appear well-positioned to continue to make groundbreaking contributions to space travel and exploration. However, despite the impressive growth of the commercial space sector, governments will continue to play a large role in commercial space enterprises, and in space travel and exploration — unless their ability to shape the dynamics of relations in space declines radically.

Professors: Check out TMC’s ever-expanding list of classroom topic guides .

Svetla Ben-Itzhak ( @SvetlaBI ) is assistant professor of space and international relations at the U.S. Air and Space Forces’ Air University . The views expressed are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Defense, or of any organization the author is affiliated with, including the Air University, the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Space Force.

Space tourism economics – financing and regulating trips to the final frontier

Professor of Strategy, Warwick Business School, University of Warwick

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Loizos Heracleous does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

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American engineer and businessman Dennis Tito paid US$20m in 2001 to become the world’s first official space tourist . He travelled to the International Space Station (ISS) on a Russian Soyuz capsule and then spent eight days on board, prompting some debate about the appropriateness of using the facility for financial gain. Since Tito, six other commercial passengers have visited the ISS – each on Soyuz spacecraft at US$20m a piece. The last of these travelled in 2009 , after which the Russians halted the practice. But now commercial space travel, albeit at a lower orbit, is set to start again with a price tag that even the average multi-millionaire might be able to afford.

To the ordinary person, commercial space travel may seem like a pipe dream, but at an embryonic level a few well-funded space companies are creaking into action. Jeff Bezos has announced that a passenger flying with his aerospace company, Blue Origin, will pay between US$200,000 and US$300,000 for a ticket – comparable to Virgin Galactic’s proposed price of US$250,000 . Passengers will experience weightlessness for three to six minutes, and enjoy unparalleled views of the stars and the curvature of the Earth.

Most of these space tourism products and technologies are still in their early stages, so for a commercial company setting a price is a delicate balancing act. Operators must settle on a figure low enough to be affordable to sufficient numbers of consumers, but high enough that the service could be commercially sustainable.

Currently, Bezos’ proposed price seemingly doesn’t even attempt to do this. Indeed, given his outgoings, it is more of a gift to those lucky souls who have the money to spare.

A financial black hole

The New Shepard rocket which Blue Origin plans to use for commercial trips has been in development since 2006. It will carry six commercial astronauts on each launch, and launches cost tens of millions of US dollars. Elon Musk has said that it costs US$62m to launch his Falcon 9 rocket, and US$90m for the much larger Falcon Heavy.

If this seems like a lot, then consider the billions the rockets cost to develop. Jeff Bezos reportedly liquidates around US$1 billion per year to fund Blue Origin , and the cost of the company’s New Glenn rocket alone was US$2.5 billion . The cost of the New Shepard, an earlier development built over the course of a decade, was likely the same or even higher.

Six customers each paying US$300,000 drums up US$1.8m for Blue Origin, barely scratching the surface of the tens of millions each launch will cost. Taking into account rocket development and the human and technological resources required for a successful launch, it is a miniscule contribution.

Small steps

That said, this nascent market has to start somewhere. The technical accomplishments of designing and operating reusable rockets has already reduced launch costs by several orders of magnitude. Bezos’ take-offs cost tens of millions; a single-use rocket would have cost hundreds of million. Technology is still developing and the relevant companies are maintaining a healthy mixture of competition and collaboration, so there is no reason why a financially sustainable market might not emerge in the future. Until then, Bezos has said that he sees Blue Origin as his most important work, and has pledged to keep funding it as long as needed .

The planned flight paths will take passengers up to the Karman line – the notional border about 100km above the Earth where the atmosphere ends, and real space begins. In future, flights could once again bring visitors to the ISS, 408km into space, where accommodation infrastructure already exists , tacked onto the station in 2016.

The ISS costs US$3-4 billion a year to maintain and run, and is nearing its projected retirement date within four to eight years, depending on the estimate. Rather than decommission it, the US government favours gradually moving the ISS into the commercial sector . Some years down the line, space tourism might be instrumental in securing the future of one of the great ventures of space exploration.

Regulating an endless vacuum

But a mere glance at the history books reveals the dangers of space flight, and administering the vacuum that is space is a huge challenge to legislators. Under current regulation, commercial passengers will have to sign an “informed consent” form to confirm that they recognise and accept the risks. This provision has been enshrined in US law by the Commercial Space Launch Amendments Act 2004 , and in UK law by the Space Industry Act 2018 .

These forms will not cover damage to others, and spaceflight operators will need to have third party insurance. Early international agreements such as the Outer Space Treaty of 1967 state that any activity in space, by government or non-government entities would need to be authorised and supervised by the state – leaving it responsible for any damages caused by entities under its banner. In future, extraterrestrial travel insurance will probably be available from insurance companies, and perhaps even facilitated by operators.

Despite long delays to the plans of Blue Origin, Virgin’s Space Galactic and others, it is a matter of when not if commercial space travel becomes commonplace. Technology will advance, demand will expand, and the costs of launches and tickets will fall, driving the innovations that should help make this a reality for generations to come.

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Space travel is the next frontier in tourism, but is it a marketing opportunity?

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Space tourism used to be the reserve of sci-fi. But, says Joanna Lewis of Relevance, a trip to space is increasingly a reality – if you can afford the price tag.

More and more people are taking trips beyond the Earth's atmosphere, says Joanna Lewis / Freepik

Space travel is the new frontier for ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWI), giving the world’s wealthiest travelers the chance to view life on Earth from a whole new perspective.

Commercial flights into space are becoming more routine, with the race for space travel being led by Virgin Galactic , SpaceX , Blue Origin, and Space Adventures. However, space tourism remains the reserve of the world’s richest individuals, with space travel companies focusing their marketing efforts on UHNWIs and billionaires.

According to research by UBS, the space tourism market is expected to reach a value of US$3bn (£2.4bn) by 2030. And it’s not surprising, given the global UHNW population in 2022 was 395,070, according to Wealth-X, with a combined wealth of $45,430bn. The total billionaire population stands at 3,194 individuals, with a collective wealth of $11,107bn.

Not only will space tourism add an exciting dimension to where UHNWIs vacation , but it will also provide a lucrative market for successful space tourism companies.

What are the different types of space travel ?

There are several different types of space travel, including orbital, suborbital, and lunar space tourism. Currently, space tourism is primarily focused on orbital and suborbital.

Suborbital space tourism is when the spacecraft reaches space but doesn’t break the gravitational border. Space tourism is currently dominated by suborbital spaceflights, with space travel companies Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin dominating this market. Suborbital flights typically reach altitudes of about 62 miles and give passengers just a few minutes in space and the chance to experience micro-gravity.

Orbital space tourism is when the spacecraft reaches orbit and passengers can spend up to a week orbiting Earth. SpaceX and Space Adventures are the only companies currently offering orbital space tourism.

Who are the key players in space tourism ?

The key players at the forefront of the race to bring space tourism to the masses are Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin, and SpaceX.

Virgin Galactic was established in 2004 by the British entrepreneur and billionaire Richard Branson. It launched its first commercial spaceflight in June 2023 for research purposes only and carried three passengers from the Italian Air Force and National Research Council.

The company took its first paying space travelers aboard Galactic O2 on August 10, 2023. The space tourism flight was launched from New Mexico and took three passengers – mother and daughter Keisha Schahaff and Anastasia Mayers, and Jon Goodwin, an 80-year-old former Olympian – to the edge of space and back, reaching an apex point of 55 miles above Earth and lasting a total of 72 minutes.

Virgin Galactic now offers a monthly cadence of spaceflights, asserting itself as a major player in space tourism. Each flight can accommodate three paying passengers, along with an accompanying astronaut.

Aerospace company Blue Origin was founded by American billionaire Jeff Bezos in 2000. Bezos traveled to space aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket in 2021, describing the experience as the “best day ever.” His journey into space lasted 10 minutes and 10 seconds and was Blue Origin’s first crewed flight. The flight also took aviation pioneer Wally Funk, and 18-year-old Oliver Daemen, the youngest space traveler.

SpaceX is owned by billionaire Elon Musk and was founded in 2002. In 2021, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, the first orbital class rocket capable of re-flight, successfully took four passengers into orbit – 363 miles above Earth. A year later, the company, in conjunction with Axiom Space, took four passengers to the International Space Station, where they spent more than a week. According to reports, the passengers paid US$55m each for the trip.

SpaceX is the only space tourism company to send private civilians into orbit and to the International Space Station. To date, the Falcon 9 rocket has undergone 299 launches, 257 landings, and 231 re-flights. SpaceX’s Starship is the world’s most powerful launch system and in the future should be able to carry up to 100 people on long-duration, interplanetary flights.

While space tourism has gained headlines over the past few years as the industry is poised to become more accessible, it has been around for several decades. Indeed, American businessman Dennis Tito was the first space tourist in 2001, visiting the International Space Station while joining two Russian cosmonauts on a supply mission. The trip cost him a reported US$20m.

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How much does a trip to outer space cost?

The cost of space tourism has dramatically decreased since Tito's trip. However, it can vary significantly depending on the type of flight – suborbital or orbital – and on the company.

A Virgin Galactic ticket, for example, costs $450,000; however, even those with the cash to splash will have to join an 800-long waiting list.

Blue Origin does not publicly publish its flight costs. However, according to a space tourist who booked a flight in 2021 aboard Blue Origin, he paid a reported US$28m, although later had to skip the flight due to a “scheduling conflict”.

While the cost of space travel is currently prohibitive except for the world’s wealthiest individuals, there’s no doubt that as technology advances and space tourism companies reach economies of scale, space travel will become more affordable to more people.

What’s next for space tourism ?

Beyond commercial flights becoming more regular and more affordable, space tourism companies are already setting their sights on extended stays in space. In 2018, Orion Span, a galactic experience company, launched plans for an extended stay in a luxury space hotel – the Aurora Station – on the moon. The experience will reportedly set travelers back $9.5m.

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Resolving the disconnect between industry and the DOD's space strategy

I n September 2023, the U.S. Department of Defense released a congressionally mandated report on its strategy to protect space-based assets. This unclassified version of DoD's top-secret space strategy incorporates multiple defense approaches, including building resilient network architectures, maintaining situational awareness of the space environment, and defending against adversary attacks.

The Commercial Space Integration Strategy , published in April of this year, lays out four priorities for engaging the commercial sector to help achieve the greater strategy. It makes clear the DoD's need to make solutions resulting from the proliferation of commercial solutions integral to achieving its goals.

Such an ambitious, multi-faceted approach is essential given growing threats to orbiting satellites and the terrestrial infrastructure that supports them. Last August, multiple federal intelligence agencies issued a joint warning about the increasing attempts to attack on-orbit satellites. We have already seen a Russian cyberattack crippling Ukraine satellite communications as Russia began its ground war there; and many leading experts continually warn about the vulnerabilities of the vast satellite infrastructure on which modern life depends.

Unfortunately, space has entered an unprecedented period of rapid technological change and geopolitical competition, where stability can no longer be taken for granted. Near-peer adversaries are continually striving to evolve their cyber-attack tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs) against U.S. assets. To counter these efforts, the federal government must collaborate with commercial satellite operators to stay ahead of attackers.

Strengthening commercial satellite cybersecurity

To that end, the U.S. Space Force has led the development of the Infrastructure Asset Pre-Approval Program (IA-Pre). IA-Pre is an objective cybersecurity risk assessment process for key self-nominated commercial SATCOM assets measured against National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) controls and enhancements. It contains over 400 cybersecurity controls aligned with the NIST 800-53 High-Impact level – far exceeding the 55 controls in the legacy CIAQ security framework.

The Commercial Space Integration Strategy lists ensuring commercial solutions are available when and where needed, in peacetime and during conflicts, as the top priority. Achieving integration of commercial solutions into the desired military-commercial architecture is second. The point is to train as you intend to fight. But the full integration cannot be achieved without baseline IA-PRE protections.

Commercial satellite providers may opt to invest in the stringent IA-Pre cybersecurity capabilities that the DoD deems important. In fact, several operators are pursuing such investment, given both increased threat levels and the opportunity to become an integrated connectivity partner for defense missions. This is in addition to DoD-mandated CMMC compliance, where pursuing the highest Level 3 certification will ensure the most robust security posture.

Further, while the DoD has not specifically called them out, there are additional advanced security capabilities that providers may consider integrating to further strengthen their offerings: for example, adhering to security standards based on NIST SP 800-171; building a secure, global Layer 2 network architecture; installing a highly redundant terrestrial infrastructure to ensure operational continuity even in the most extreme conditions; and enabling capacity for any standard of encryption and key management. And, with the growing adoption of Low Earth Orbit, or LEO, satellite networks that include hundreds to thousands of satellites, advances like burst communications, antennas with fast-hopping agile beams, frequent satellite to satellite hand-offs, Optical inter-satellite links (OISLs) and terminal obfuscation will provide additional layers of protection.

Acquisition disconnects

Even with these opportunities to deliver elevated cybersecurity measures needed by the DoD, the commercial space industry has concerns about justifying the actual return on the considerable investment providing these capabilities represents. There are industry expectations that the government would give requirements like IA-Pre preferential scoring for source selection and procurement. Unfortunately, this has not yet become the standard practice for commercial SATCOM acquisition.

The situation is compounded by a growing interest among DoD agencies for a satellite-as-a-service model for space connectivity. For instance, the U.S. Space Force is planning to launch a marketplace for satellite-to-cellular communications services later this year. Last year, the DoD contracted for a 5-year blanket purchase agreement for medium-Earth orbit, or MEO, low-latency, high-throughput satellite services. More opportunities are expected soon. In fact, recent estimates suggest that the market for governments purchasing satellite access rather than building their own satellite networks could reach $14.5B by 2032.

For that model to be successful, commercial providers must be able to meet security requirements that government customers, including the DoD, will require. Without some meaningful market benefit from making such investments, commercial satellite providers won't be able to continue incurring the cost and operational complexity of planning, implementing, and maintaining them.

Highly sophisticated space systems cannot be left to lowest-price technically acceptable (LPTA) selection. Defense authorization legislation and updates to the Federal Acquisition Regulations were supposed to limit agency LPTA usage, yet commercial operators continue to see a disconnect where providers who are significantly investing in cybersecurity requirements are not seeing those requirements appropriately scored in contract awards. This divide will put federal satellite communications at a critical disadvantage against the growing volume of attacks by increasingly-sophisticated and capable adversaries.

To help bridge the gap, the SATCOM Industry Group (SIG) proposed the following measures for DoD to implement:

- Establish a hard-cutoff date for the legacy CIAQ framework and other non-IA-Pre processes, to facilitate transition to the IA-Pre model

- Publish an objective and transparent assessment methodology and scoring of the specific controls relative to residual risk for commercial operators making investment decisions

- Increase data protection. The Space Force should consider the data provided in the IA-Pre Database as proprietary information of the asset owner, not to be released by any party except by the asset owner under the provisions of a Non-Disclosure Agreement

- Require licensed Agent of Security Control Assessors (ASCAs). If non-governmental personnel are used to evaluate IA-Pre compliance, clear personal and organizational conflict of interest safeguards should be established and enforced. Also, the cost of assessment needs to be clarified in a transparent manner.

A strong, transparent and equal public and private partnership is required for the DoD to adapt to this new era of contested space. Ensuring that cybersecurity investments are considered when procuring commercial satellite capabilities would be a strong start to such a relationship.

Philip Harlow is president of Telesat Government Solutions.

Not far out: can games predict the future of commercial space travel

Spacelines From The Far Out is a new video game that simulates commercial space travel, but how realistic is its portrayal? We spoke to space historian and author Rod Pyle to find out.

With its seemingly endless possibilities, there’s a good reason why space was famously dubbed as ‘the final frontier.’ Whilst that memorable line was the hallmark of the 1960s star-faring TV series, Star Trek, science fiction has unfolded on our screens for well over a century now, offering us visions of a future beyond the stars that can be terrifying or inspiring, but is always exciting. 

From Georges Méliès’ 1902 film, “A Trip to the Moon” to 2022’s "Spacelines From The Far Out", science fiction has always offered a glimpse into the far future that has sometimes manifested into reality. Television, the internet and the 1969 Moon landing were all predicted by science fiction before eventually coming to pass. "Spacelines From The Far Out" is a 2022 video game developed by Coffeenauts that sees you take control of a commercial space line company, responsible for transporting customers along established space ways. 

Whilst the game itself is amusingly irreverent and drapes itself with a delightful 1950s kitsch ‘space race’ aesthetic, its subject matter couldn’t be more relevant to modern discussions about the lightning pace at which the commercial space travel sector is growing. With commercial entities like Virgin Galactic , SpaceX and Blue Origi n set to be joined by new players in the coming years, experts in the field are predicting that affordable suborbital travel will be available to most of us within a couple of decades. 

Should those predictions prove to be accurate, commercial space travel will become an increasingly real possibility for millions of people across the globe. In the meantime, "Spacelines From The Far Out" has been launched on Xbox Game Pass, meaning you can have fun navigating the stresses and hurdles of commercial space travel, without the billions of dollars needed in startup costs.

To celebrate these exciting prospects, Space.com spoke to Rod Pyle, noted space historian and author. Pyle has also worked with NASA at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the Johnson Space Center, making him perfectly-placed to assess if any accurate predictions of note regarding the future of commercial space travel can be drawn from this light-hearted, fun and topical slice of entertainment. 

Rod Pyle is a space historian who has previously worked with NASA at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the Johnson Space Center. He's written numerous books about space exploration, and he has written many guest articles for Space.com over the years.

Power management systems 

One of the key game mechanics in "Spacelines From The Far Out" sees players having to juggle their craft’s power distribution among various systems such as propulsion, steering, catering and cleaning systems, all initially powered by a pretty hefty battery. Whilst constant battery-powered systems switching might make for a fun and frantic video game experience, how feasible is it in reality? “Historically, human-crewed government-contracted spacecraft, whether built by US aerospace contractors or Soviet-era design bureaus, were powered by batteries or in the case of Apollo fuel cells, hydrogen and oxygen,” explains Pyle. 

With its 1950s retro stylings, "Spacelines From The Far Out"’s somewhat antiquated choice of battery power makes sense, at least from an aesthetic perspective, but as Pyle points out, energy systems in the commercial space line era have advanced drastically: “Soyuz and upcoming Orion will use solar panels,” he adds. “There is a new generation of solar panel designs under development at NASA/JPL that will be usable into the outer solar system, as far out as Neptune, which is a huge advance in just the past few years.”

Despite the advances in solar technology, Pyle ultimately believes that nuclear power will be a key component as commercial flights venture deeper and deeper into space: “In my view, nuclear fission power sources will be critical to success for long-duration spaceflight and planetary habitats,” he states. “This need is the motivator behind the NASA/Department of Energy-supported Kilopower reactor project, which will provide small fission reactors that will be capable of providing energy for 10-15 years.”

Craft design 

"Spacelines From The Far Out" may have struck out on the power front, but what about the charming capsule-style design of its space liners that ferry an assortment of passengers from spaceport to spaceport? Unsurprisingly, this design style also stems from the ‘space race’ era, although according to Pyle, this configuration is far from obsolete: “The designs for capsule-shaped spacecraft like Orion, Dragon and the new Boeing Starliner date back to studies performed in the 1950s and were first flown in the 1960s,” he explains, “they work well and are fairly foolproof. The same general design has worked for aeroshells for US Mars landers from the Vikings in the 1970s to the entry enclosure for the Perseverance rover.”

However, Pyle does point out that more innovative designs from newer players such as SpaceX will slowly replace capsule technology, adding, “SpaceX’s Crew Dragon pushed the design limits with fuselage-mounted abort engines and other features whilst in my view, Boeing’s Starliner fell back on more conventional technologies. It will do the job but with less versatility and a much later safety-rated delivery date. Moving ahead, while blunt-body capsules will probably stay in use for some time, SpaceX’s Starship really changes the paradigm quite a bit, utilizing research dating back to various lifting body designs and even the shuttle, and yet is truly reusable. It also offers a huge cargo capacity and lifting capability.”

Safety standards 

Despite being a whimsical recreation of what commercial space travel might look like, "Spacelines From The Far Out" also includes a game mechanic where the safety standards of your space line are rigorously monitored. Whilst this is in place to add an extra layer of drama to the game’s already frantic proceedings, it is certainly conceivable that profit-oriented companies like SpaceX could experience pressure to relax safety standards in order to reduce operational costs. With that said, who would be responsible for oversight of public safety beyond the Earth’s atmosphere?

“It’s been very difficult to sell the idea of relaxed safety standards to the public,” notes Pyle. “To date, NASA and the FAA have been overseeing flight safety. In the future, much as occurred with civil aviation, a new federal agency may be needed to handle safety oversight for commercial spaceflight and habitation. While I would suggest that a company like SpaceX be allowed to take greater risks for completely private missions with fully-risk-aware professional crews, I support federal oversight for spaceflight safety for civilians as commercial flights increase in tempo—with the caveat that this agency should be as agile, streamlined, and rapidly-responsive as possible.” 

Affordability 

Finally, by the time you take the costs of fuel, cleaning, maintenance, tech upgrades and insurance into account, "Spacelines From The Far Out" can see you running a quick flight for just a few bucks profit. Whilst commercial space travel is presently the preserve of the wealthy, can we envisage a future where low-budget space lines run a huge volume of low-cost routes, eking out a small profit with each voyage?

“I absolutely see spaceflight becoming something that the average middle-class individual might be able to engage in within the next 20 years,” says Pyle. “The most likely scenario I see is something like SpaceX’s Starship making suborbital hops—a longer ‘spaceflight’ experience than that currently offered by Blue Origin’s New Shepard or Branson’s Virgin Galactic flights, for roughly the cost of a first-class transoceanic ticket.” 

As for longer orbital trips, Pyle predicts that they will remain expensive for some time to come: “I foresee 1-3 orbit tourist flights being popular,” he adds. “Private space stations will, I suspect, remain the domain of the well-heeled for a few decades, as will lunar landings and extended stays there. However, I’d like to be optimistic, and we should remember that while this is primarily the domain of US companies to date, there will eventually be international competition, so the field could accelerate dramatically with time.”

So, whilst "Spacelines From The Far Out" doesn’t quite match up to the bright future of commercial space travel, that most likely isn’t the aim. Still, despite its irreverent tone, a manic play through still offers a few insights into some of the problems and possibilities afforded by the prospect of travel beyond the stars. 

To see more great examples of how sci-fi has imagined space travelling future, check out our guides to the best space games and best space movies . We also have a forward-facing look at all the upcoming space games too.

Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: [email protected].

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Dan's interests sit squarely at the intersection of science fiction and cinema, two childhood obsessions that he loves writing about this day. As video editor for UK outlet Film Stories   he loves writing about movies every day. Dan has a degree that he's never used, believing instead that the answers to all of life's questions can be found by gazing at a huge screen in a darkened room in the company of strangers. You'll usually find him here at Space talking about sci-fi movies and games.

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• MrKarisma Probably not as they have not taken artificial gravity seriously even in the year of 2022. Not even planning for a big rotating space station which is what the ISS should have been. Humans are faaaaaar away from anything resembling anything in sci-fi games. Money goes down a black hole instead of research in space and developement - which could save humanity in so many ways. Holding my breath for Elons Star Ship and that it all works out exactly like he dreamed it, or even better with concepts Ive seen on youtube with several Starships connected and rotating for artificial gravity. Reply
• View All 1 Comment

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Covering the business and politics of space

U.S. Space Force renews call for ‘reserve’ of commercial satellite providers

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WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force in early 2023 floated the idea of establishing a “commercial space reserve” that would allow the military to quickly tap private satellite operators during a conflict.

Gen. Michael Guetlein, vice chief of space operations, said the Space Force is in the midst of figuring out how to establish such a commercial reserve, which will require intricate negotiations with satellite operators to hash out binding agreements.

Speaking April 24 at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Guetlein said the military’s reliance on private sector contractors during past wars underscores the historical significance of its relationship with industry, and that dynamic that should extend to space operations through the envisioned commercial reserve.

“If you look at our industry partners from the Civil War all the way forward, our industry partners have always been there. And they’re always the ones that have pulled us out of the fire when the fighting got tough. They’re the ones that made sure we had all the material that we needed and helped take care of the homeland when we were deployed forward,” Guetlein said.

“So it’s not a new lesson that we’re learning. But it’s a lesson that has become more acute with space,” he added.

CASR program

Guetlein was an early proponent of what the Space Force calls the “Commercial Augmentation Space Reserve,” or CASR. 

He said efforts to implement CASR are moving forward , fueled by the realization that when the U.S. military goes to war, the commercial satellites it uses for communications, surveillance or other purposes are considered legitimate military targets. 

“Russia has said anybody in space is going to be a target,” said Guetlein. “So I can no longer say that’s a commercial asset. Don’t touch it. That’s an international asset. Don’t touch it. That’s a DoD asset. Don’t touch it. We’re all going to be operating in the same domain fighting for the same real estate, subject to the same threats.”

And if that’s going to be a new reality, he added,”then we’d better learn how to partner.”

CASR is modeled after existing programs like the Civil Reserve Air Fleet and the Voluntary Intermodal Sealift Agreement that give the U.S. access to commercial air transport and sealift capacity from private companies.

The Space Force now has to figure out agreements with industry to make sure their services are available and accessible to the Department of Defense, Guetlein said.

China’s military integrated with commercial space

The Pentagon now views China as its most capable adversary, with an arsenal of space weapons that would be used to disrupt, degrade or destroy U.S. space assets. “They have the intent to deny our ability to use space, so that makes it a very real threat that we are concerned about,” said Guetlein.

Another concern for the Pentagon is that China’s government organization overseeing space activities has a close relationship with that nation’s commercial space companies. 

Since 2016, when the Chinese reorganized its military organizations to increase its focus on space, China has deployed 950 satellites, a DoD intelligence official told reporters at the Pentagon April 22. “That’s both military and commercial dual-use, and more than 470 of those are ISR dedicated platforms” for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. 

For the U.S. military, establishing a commercial reserve would ensure U.S. access to space-based services while incentivizing more private investment, officials have argued. But they are also aware that for commercial firms, signing such agreements with the U.S. government could complicate satellite operators’ ability to sell capacity globally if their fleets were prioritized for the Pentagon.

Saltzman supports commercial reserve

During a House Armed Services Committee hearing last week, Gen. Chance Saltzman, chief of space operations, voiced support for the CASR program.

“It’s about how rapidly we can expand and augment our capabilities in times of crisis or conflict,” he told lawmakers. “A lot of the pre-work, the planning for how we will integrate, the contractual work that needs to be done with the companies to make sure that we’re primed to execute at the speed of need is really what is at the heart of the CASR program.”

“We have to do the work ahead of time, account for it in planning, see what the requirements are, which of those requirements can be met by the commercial industry, and then start talking about contract negotiations before we even actually sign a contract so that we are ready and primed to put that excess capacity in place when we need it.”

Sandra Erwin

Sandra Erwin writes about military space programs, policy, technology and the industry that supports this sector. She has covered the military, the Pentagon, Congress and the defense industry for nearly two decades as editor of NDIA’s National Defense... More by Sandra Erwin

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Home » Home » 5 Best Commercial Lenders in the USA

5 Best Commercial Lenders in the USA

By Space Coast Daily  //  April 10, 2024

Deciding on the right lender can make all the variation when obtaining commercial venture financing. With countless alternatives for searching “ commercial lenders near me ” available in the market, finding the best one benefit to your needs can be a daunting task.

To simplify your search, we’ve compiled a list of the top five commercial lenders in the USA, each renowned for its reliability, flexibility, and customer service. If you are someone searching for “ commercial lenders near me “, keep reading this article.

BridgeWell Capital

BridgeWell Capital is a premier commercial lender in the USA, offering tailored financial solutions to investors and entrepreneurs nationwide. With a focus on real estate investment, BridgeWell Capital provides hard money loans, fix-and-flip financing, rental property loans, and more. BridgeWell Capital is committed to fast and hassle-free funding, allowing borrowers to capitalize on time-sensitive opportunities in the competitive real estate market.

Founded with the vision of empowering investors with accessible capital, BridgeWell Capital prides itself on its transparent lending process and personalized customer support. Whether you’re a seasoned investor or a first-time borrower, BridgeWell Capital’s team of specialists works closely with clients to understand their special goals and structure financing solutions that align with their needs. With fierce rates, bendable terms, and quick approvals, BridgeWell Capital has earned its reputation as a trusted partner for commercial lending needs.

Wells Fargo

As one of the largest banks in the USA, Wells Fargo is a household name synonymous with reliability and stability. Wells Fargo caters to businesses of all sizes across multiple industries, offering a wide array of commercial lending products, including term loans, lines of credit, and commercial real estate financing. With its vast network of branches and online banking services, Wells Fargo provides convenience and accessibility to borrowers nationwide.

JP Morgan Chase  

JP Morgan Chase is another leading commercial lender renowned for its comprehensive financial services and global expertise. Focusing on corporate and investment banking, JP Morgan Chase offers tailored financing solutions to businesses, institutions, and government entities. JP Morgan Chase leverages its industry knowledge and resources from acquisition financing to working capital loans to help clients achieve their strategic objectives  

Bank of America

Bank of America is an eminent player in the commercial lending landscape, providing diverse financing options to businesses across the USA. With a strong emphasis on relationship banking, Bank of America offers personalized service and dedicated support to help clients navigate their financial needs. Whether you’re seeking capital for expansion, equipment financing, or commercial real estate loans, Bank of America delivers flexible solutions backed by its extensive experience and resources.

CIT Group Inc.

CIT Group Inc. rounds out our list of the best commercial lenders in the USA. It specializes in financing solutions for small and middle-market businesses. Focusing on asset-based lending, equipment financing, and vendor finance programs, CIT Group Inc. caters to a wide scope of industries, including healthcare, transportation, and technology. With its commitment to innovation and customer-centric approach, CIT Group Inc. remains a trusted partner for businesses seeking reliable, flexible financing options.  

In conclusion, choosing the right commercial lender is crucial for the success of any business venture. Whether you’re a real estate investor, small business owner, or corporate executive, the above lenders offer the expertise, resources, and support needed to fuel your growth and achieve your financial goals. With their reputation for reliability, flexibility, and customer service, these top commercial lenders in the USA stand ready to partner with you on your journey to success.

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