When will high traffic space flights begin?

[alt_f13]

How long do you think it will take before space flight will be affordable for the average person?

 

Where are we at today?

[5614]

well, what do you mean by; for the normal person?

 

do you mean, someone who is rich, but not a millionaire, or just a random, every day bob smith!

 

id say, not for a while, but it depends on this:

 

at the moment you pay X amount for a holiday, however, would they pay say, 2X for their space holiday, basically, would people be willing to pay more money for a space holiday, than an average holiday?

 

if you wait for the prices to match those of current average holidays, then not in your lifetime.

 

if you are just waiting for it to become a realistic possibility for non-millionaires, but still be expensive, then maybe one day, when you are old.

 

in other words, approaching the end of the next 100 years...

[atinymonkey]

I still have my Pan Am tickets to the moon. I'm hopefull they will start up again soon.

[Irken_Link]

I'm not sure that it will be that soon for space traffic. Your going to need more time many space vehicles into massive production.

[Mad Mardigan]

Russians will take you there for quite the fee, but with the Ansari X prize. It might be approaching faster then you think.

 

http://www.xprize.org/

[ydoaPs]

so i am guessing monday was a big disspointment?

[Mad Mardigan]

Spaceshipone won the 10 million USD prize. From what I gather, they will be doing it every year. So go join a team working on a ship and volunteer for the experimental rider position.

[Caustic]

the private space travel industry is still in its infant stages... but i will soon be offering orbital flights in my home built space ship for $1000 USD per person. Hurry because i only have 30 seats left! I accept paypal, cashiers check, and money order. Please send all payments as soon as possible to reserve your seat on the first flight!

 

no but seriously, i think that in less than 20 years we will all be able to go to space for a reasonable price and maybe even the moon. I hope that in my lifetime i will be able to go to mars, but i dont know if that is possible.

 

What can we do to speed up the process? We all should become Aerospace Engineers (as i plan to do) and help advance the space industry. we need to develop new and cheap propulsion technology, and start our own companies to support the industry. The success of this industry depends on how many people devote their lives to it. you can count me in.

[Stargazer]

There are several of the X-Prize teams that are still working on their vehicles, so I think we are somewhere around some sort of singularity, that is, the development is going faster and faster and the number of competing vehicles will further accelerate the development.

 

Virgin Galactic is hopeful to begin suborbital hops of civilians within a few years, and Bigelow Aerospace will build a private spacestation/hotel in orbit, and needs a spacecraft capable of going to LEO with a few passangers. As soon as spacecrafts have somewhere to go except suborbital or LEO, then private spaceflight is here to stay. Moon and Mars comes next, but that will take a while.

 

In the beginning of avionics, the aeroplanes were small and not terribly fast. This changed more and more, and to think that they 747 was built within 70 years of the Wright Brothers first plane, is fascinating. I believe there will be a similar revolution in spaceflight. Maybe not as quick, but it will happen, I am sure.

[Mad Mardigan]

Once we have civilians in spacestation, there will be a Fox reality show.