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Virgin to offer 'space' tourism

It'll work. Branson is a smart guy. He know's there's a hell of a lot of people in the world with £100k to blow on a real once in a lifetime experiance like this.
 
edesignuk said:
Nothing wrong with that...sometimes :eek: :D
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You're right. Nothing wrong with being optimistic...

I'm just a jaded cynical old crow who hangs round here for laughs and the Mac goss...

:)

Still beats the Big Brother or soap forums...
 
If I had that kind of disposable money to spend, then I might consider the trip. Since that will never happen, I won't get my hopes up.
 
So many good dirty jokes over that headline. :rolleyes: So does this mean that insync kid gets into space now. :rolleyes:
 
Five Virgin Galactic SpaceShips are to be built. They will carry five passengers in luxury seats. Anyone who buys a ticket will require about a week's worth of flight training for what will be just a three-hour trip.
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The training is going to be an issue for some. I wonder if you can fail the training and be denied a seat ? :D And there will also probably be weight restrictions - one 300lb guy or 3 100 lb women....would you have to pay by weight?

Regardless, this is all great stuff and I look forward to being able to see the Earth from space one day.

D
 
MacNut said:
How would this look tho having Branson with better ships than NASA
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well, calling these things space ships might be a little much. They're not even orbiting the planet, just going a little above the atmosphere.

Regardless, its the way you have to start. Also makes NASA look at getting their act together for a Shuttle replacement because in a decade or so these commercial flights will start getting into orbit.

D
 
Come back in 10 years...

...because by then it'll probably be more like $10,000 to orbit. Now that's gonna see a lot of tourists, greatly improved economies of scale, more investment in better space tech & infrastructure, and an every increasing market looking for a space 'destination' and voila by 2030, you will be able to book that week's stay at Club Med Orbit to see if freefall sex really is all it's cracked up to be in the sci-fi books!

And it will be about time.. we've been waiting for this for forty years already! Took about fifty to sixty years (and two world wars) for air travel to become remotely affordable for the masses, so we are about at the right point.

Only lets skip the wars this time.
;)
 
Hoef said:
As long as they maintain their short skirt 21yr old flight attendants
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In zero G I imagine spandex will be the attire....

With the number of different companies getting into the game here, its going to be the consumer who wins in the end. My only concern would be to go with the company that has the best equipment/safety record.

The first time someone dies in reentry its going to really hurt the whole industry.

D
 
Agreed, especially since SpaceShipOne went out of control on the descent in its test flight. The pilot brought it back but it doesn't bode well.
 
There's bound to be problems, especially when they start getting into orbit. Its going to be more expensive the higher you go and the wear and tear on the vehicles increases dramatically since you need to attain escape velocity speeds to get to orbit...

NASA is way ahead of all the rest and look at their issues - they've already lost 2 shuttles...

D
 
MacNut said:
So many good dirty jokes over that headline. :rolleyes: So does this mean that insync kid gets into space now. :rolleyes:
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If i won the lotto I would be in line to buy a ticket.

The thing for many of us (40+ yo), is that space has been a broken promise. it was just a few days short of my birthday that that i was given the present of man on the moon for my 11th birthday. For many my age you remember the Space Bonds. Space was to be the new frontier. It was hoped that by now we would have permeant bases on the moon, yet alone orbiting earth.

Now all we have is underfunded programs and unfunded mandates with not realistic revenue to fund it. And most importantly no clear mission.

I remember my parents talking of paying for my sister and I to be part of the PanAm Space Clipper, way back when.
 
Mr. Anderson said:
The training is going to be an issue for some. I wonder if you can fail the training and be denied a seat ? :D And there will also probably be weight restrictions - one 300lb guy or 3 100 lb women....would you have to pay by weight?

Regardless, this is all great stuff and I look forward to being able to see the Earth from space one day.

D
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Damn, you are sounding like Southwest Airways now... :D
 
Mr. Anderson said:
There's bound to be problems, especially when they start getting into orbit. Its going to be more expensive the higher you go and the wear and tear on the vehicles increases dramatically since you need to attain escape velocity speeds to get to orbit...

NASA is way ahead of all the rest and look at their issues - they've already lost 2 shuttles...

D
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Exploration has always been dangerous. I just wonder with our 24/7 news coverage, if any loss of life will be tolerated. The current way that coverage is done concerns me. It has now been more than a year since the shuttle was grounded and no return in sight.
 
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