Space Tourism - Waste of Funding?

Photograph: Phillip Toledano
Credit: theguardian.com

Stéphane Israël, CEO and Chairman of the global-leader of launch service providers (launcher of ESA's Rosetta), Arianespace SA, stated that because space tourism does not benefit enough people, and given "a new space race" between India, China, the United States, and other nations (that is allegedly underway), space tourism should not be prioritized by government funding. Let me explain why I think he needs to reconsider.

According to The Australian Financial Review and The Sydney Morning Herald, which reported on an interview between Israël and Fairfax Media, Australasia's leading multi-platform media company (and publisher of AFR and SMH), Arianespace's chief executive has said the he does not believe in space tourism - it even is a waste of funding. In Israël's opinion, tourism operations, such as Virgin Galactic's and potentially SpaceX's (being also a strong competitive threat to Arianespace's cargo business due to SpaceX gaining market share and continuously reducing costs - economies of scale), should not be a priority for government funding. "But he also said government support and funding should be kept for space programs that focused on helping as many people as possible rather than wealthy space tourists on services like Virgin Galactic." 

"If I had a dream it would be more about using space to deliver global connections to humanity than a few seconds of space tourism." - Stéphane Israël. I ask, why not fund both?

To coarsely sum up my understanding of Israël's opinion:

1. A new, competitive space race is underway, so scientific exploration should be funded, exclusively, and funding should not be wasted on space tourism.
2. Space tourism does not benefit enough people, so, again, funding should not be wasted on it.

I understand his points, but I have to disagree. The existence of a space race, similar to the one between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, I find to be highly unlikely. Today, collaboration on scientific ventures as well as the sharing of recently gained scientific and technological insight between nations is quite common. The cooperation on generating new ideas, designing new technology, and executing marvelous missions, speak against the threat of a new space race. Today, value is found in sharing and collaboration, rather than in hoarding and isolation. I do think that scientific exploration and research in space deserve more funding than it currently has access to - for the benefit of humanity; however, my point is: that's simply not a good reason to stop, or neglect, assistive funding for space tourism operators. There is a greater, potential economic impact to be achieved - a reality that should be embraced rather than rejected.

While by 2022 according to Reuters, "the space tourism industry ... is expected to be worth $1 billion," the three following types of impact from space tourism, all which call for innovation in products and services, create a chain reaction, a multiplier effect, that strongly amplifies value for the global economy:

1. There is a direct impact from spending on inputs, such as engines, computers, other resources necessary to manufacture space vessels, build ports and facilities. While the salaries of thousands of employees will be used to purchase consumer goods and services, supporting livelihoods and creating substantial economic activity.
2. In supplier industries, there is an indirect impact from the spending on inputs, such as composites, raw materials, electrical wiring, and semi-conductors (and so on) to build components. And here again, employee salaries in the supplier industry will continuously be utilized to purchase consumer goods and services, positively impacting local, state, as well as national economies.
3. An induced impact, on consumer goods and services industries, as housing, entertainment, food, and clothing, is generating benefits down the line due to the multiplier effect.

It does so much more than simply serving the wealthy end-consumers. Space tourism is a great, innovative addition to the global economy - a brand new industry - that eventually supports itself from paying end-consumers at an increasing demand rate with potentially declining ticket prices. Furthermore, for new and innovative technologies and software, that are being developed here, other application will ultimately be found. 

by Peter Steenhuis

Sources:

http://www.arianespace.com/about-us/service-solutions.asp

http://www.afr.com/p/technology/focus_on_astronauts_not_space_tourists_degGHu6r8jpKOfb3NCb3YL

http://www.fairfaxmedia.com.au/Company/Corporate-Profile/corporate-profile

http://www.smh.com.au/business/space-tourism-is-a-waste-of-humanitys-time-says-arianespace-chief-executive-stephane-israel-20141120-11qfv8.html

http://www.spacenews.com/article/launch-report/38331spacex-challenge-has-arianespace-rethinking-pricing-policies
http://www.spacex.com/about
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/20/us-usa-space-tourism-idUSBRE82J0W720120320

Space Tourism - The Birth of a New Industry

On the 31st of October, 2014, the crash of Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo during a testing session has raised questions concerning the future of space tourism - its safety, sustainability, and how government should regulate it. In this first blog post, I will start out discussing the business of space tourism. 

“Forget climbing Everest, trekking to the South Pole or canoeing up the Amazon: How about taking a trip to the far side of the moon?” (McKinley, 2012) That is how Jesse McKinley of The New York Times describes the next phase of adventurous “extreme-tourism." Entrepreneurialism has given birth to a brand new industry – space tourism. 

Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo during a
successful test flight earlier this year
Credit: Virgin.com

Space Tourism, as the name already demonstrates, is a branch of tourism which attempts to take customers on a recreational voyage into space, the outer reaches of the atmosphere - into the mesosphere (roughly 50 km above earth's surface) and above. Tourists will be able to experience weightlessness in “zero-gravity” and to enjoy breathtaking, scenic views of our home planet – earth – from space. It is also considered “the ultimate get-away-from-it-all” (McKinley, 2012) – making it seem that humans have conquered all of earth’s corners, and that we have simply ran out of places to go. Suborbital tourism, as space tourism is also referred to, is an industry that has been rapidly growing in recent years. Complete commercialization is clearly going to happen within the next few years; however, hiccups, as demonstrated by Virgin Galactic's disastrous crash, seem to be inevitable. Commercial space transportation, according to a definition by the Federal Aviation Administration, is carried out “using orbital and suborbital vehicles owned and operated by private companies or organizations for profit, procured through a competitive bidding process” (FAA, 2010). This commercial space transportation and tourism business has been initialized by entrepreneurs with enormous amounts of capital and a dream. Entrepreneurs, such as Elon Musk and Richard Branson, took this industry to the next level, from an industry that has “a plan” to an “industry moving toward fruition” (McKinley, 2012). Resources and technology that had been solely available to the NASA (for reasons of high cost) have been decreasing in price and increasing in its availability, making it easier and more feasible for entrepreneurs to enter into this innovative commercial space industry. In the coming years, affordability of a trip into space for the average person will potentially become reality. Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin, XCOR, and Space Adventures are leading the industry of space tourism in their own differentiated ways - but all with one common, primary goal: black digits on the bottom line - profit.

by Peter Steenhuis

Sources:

Federal Aviation Administration. (Sept. 2010). The Economic Impact of Commercial Space Transportation on the U.S. Economy in 2009. Federal Aviation Administration. http://www.faa.gov/news/updates/media/Economic%20Impact%20Study%20September%202010_20101026_PS.pdf. Web.

McKinley, Jesse. (7 Sept. 2012). Space Tourism Is Here! Wealthy Adventurers Wanted. New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/09/travel/space-tourism-is-here-wealthy-adventurers-wanted.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0. Web.