space tourism
Space Perspective raises $17 million
Space Perspective has raised an additional $17 million to further development of its stratospheric passenger balloon system that simulates one aspect of spaceflight.
Virgin Galactic on schedule to start commercial human suborbital flights this year
Virgin Galactic executives said Feb. 22 that they remain on schedule to begin commercial human suborbital missions before the end of the year but acknowledged it will take several years for the company to become profitable.
Soyuz returns from private astronaut mission to the ISS
A Soyuz spacecraft carrying a Russian cosmonaut and two Japanese private astronauts returned to Earth late Dec. 19, wrapping up a banner year for commercial human spaceflight.
FAA to end commercial astronaut wings program
The Federal Aviation Administration will stop awarding commercial astronaut wings at the end of this year, five months after it revised the criteria for receiving the wings.
Soyuz launches Japanese private astronauts to ISS
A Soyuz spacecraft launched Dec. 8 carrying two Japanese private astronauts and a Roscosmos cosmonaut on the first flight in more than a decade for space tourism company Space Adventures.
Space Adventures no longer planning Crew Dragon flight
Space Adventures has dropped plans to fly space tourists on a high-altitude Crew Dragon flight but has not ruled out revisiting the mission concept in the future.
Soyuz returns cosmonauts and film crew to Earth
A Soyuz spacecraft carrying a cosmonaut and two spaceflight participants landed in Kazakhstan Oct. 17, nearly two days after that spacecraft caused the station to briefly lose attitude control.
Op-Ed | It’s Time to Rescind the Moratorium on Regulation of Commercial Spaceflight
As commercial human spaceflight enjoys a breakout 2021, it doesn't make sense for Congress to keep safety regulators handcuffed through 2023, argues the author of "Bringing Columbia Home."
Space Perspective raises $40 million for stratospheric ballooning system
Space Perspective, a company developing a stratospheric ballooning system intended to give people views like those from space, has raised $40 million to fund the company through the start of commercial operations.
World View revives plans for stratospheric balloon passenger flights
World View, a company founded to carry people into the stratosphere to give them space-like views of the Earth, is reviving those plans, putting it into competition with two of its co-founders.
UN secretary-general criticizes “billionaires joyriding to space”
The secretary-general of the United Nations lumped space tourism alongside corruption and loss of freedoms as part of a “malady of mistrust” facing the world, another sign of the backlash in some quarters to private human spaceflight.
Commercial spaceflight industry sees Inspiration4 as a pathfinder but not a model
SpaceX’s first fully commercial Crew Dragon mission is being closely watched by both NASA and other companies in the commercial human spaceflight sector, who see it as a pathfinder for future missions but not necessarily a model for them.
Inspiration4 private crewed mission nears launch
SpaceX is gearing up for its first purely commercial human spaceflight, but many details about the mission remain unclear.
Op-ed | Unlocking New Economic Frontiers in Space
More than space tourists, Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson are leading the way to commercial and public utilization of space previously only imagined in science fiction.
Op-ed | Space tourism’s environmental price tag
There’s no such thing as a free launch — especially when it comes to suborbital joy rides.
Will suborbital space tourism take a suborbital trajectory?
The era of commercial suborbital human spaceflight may finally be here, but whether it lasts isn’t certain, and neither is its importance.
FAA revises criteria for commercial astronaut wings
The FAA has revised its criteria for awarding astronaut wings to those flying on commercial spacecraft, making the requirements stricter while including a significant loophole.
Space Perspective performs first balloon test flight, begins ticket sales
Space Perspective, the company planning to offer stratospheric balloon flights for tourists, has formally opened ticket sales days after its first test flight.
NASA soliciting proposals for two private astronaut missions
NASA announced June 11 that it is requesting proposals for two private astronaut missions to the International Space Station that would fly between the fall of 2022 and the end of 2023.
Axiom Space purchases three Crew Dragon missions
Axiom Space has signed a contract with SpaceX for three additional Crew Dragon missions, enough to meet its projections for private astronaut missions to the International Space Station through at least 2023.
