Charlene Chen, 11th Grade

Space tourism, though often perceived as a distant and elusive dream, has already become a reality in recent years. Starting in 2001, California businessperson Dennis Tito spent 20 million USD to board a Russian Soyuz rocket heading to the International Space Station, officially earning the title of the first “space tourist” (1). More recently in 2021, several non-astronaut civilians flew into space, all of which paid a hefty price to board their respective rides, excited for an ethereal trip only experienced by the few hundreds chosen to blast off into space (2). Generally ranging from a few hours up to a few days, these exclusive rides allow passengers to truly feel the weightlessness of zero-gravity firsthand and gaze upon Earth from an outer perspective unlike any other (3). Space tourism is a new and unique addition to the tourism industry, prompting both thrill-seeking tourists and businessmen to invest in an upcoming trend. Whether or not this ever-captivating “tourist spot” is truly worth the substantial consequences continues to spark debate as the sacrifices made along the way questions our intentions.

Tourism has been embedded into many of our lives as traveling continues to be a popular way to enjoy one’s leisure time. The industry has expanded exponentially as new improving technology allows for faster and further travel beyond what was previously possible (4). Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, tourism generated 10.3% of the global GDP ($9.6 trillion), provided 333 million jobs across the world, and accounted for 1 in every 4 new jobs created (5). Travel as an economic boon precedent, it’s highly possible that space tourism will continue improving economic yields as a growing audience becomes captivated with a new vacation spot. Some even believe that space tourism will inspire a new sense of appreciation for the planet, as the unique and rare experience would spark deep emotions of no other for its passengers. While Earth undergoes several environmental issues, the hope of space tourism is for travelers to view our beautiful planet in all its glory and return with newfound purpose to save the place in which all humans live (6).

Previous space tourists have spent millions and billions on their trip to space, but will a middle-class person ever be able to afford such a ride? People often say that space tourism is an activity reserved for the wealthy, but that is only true for the moment. A high quantity of tourists would attract further investors, driving down launch costs and in turn lower ticket prices, making the services commercially viable for more audiences (7). As of 2022, Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin, and SpaceX have begun the process of making space tourism a true reality with tickets being sold for upcoming orbital and suborbital flights (8, 9, 10). Space exploration has always required immense amounts of financial and technological expenses. If the space tourism industry is successful, launch costs will be greatly reduced and benefit both the research and tourism aspects of space exploration. Ambitious goals such as settlement on foreign planets can be realized and new innovators will be able to set forth their own projects at a lower, affordable price, while tourists can enjoy zero-gravity and the view of Earth from above (7).

Even with all the grand prosperities of space exploration and space tourism, the environmental consequences of these flights are irreversible. The massive amounts of fuel burned by spacecrafts generate hazardous small particles such as soot, aluminum oxides, and many others. These lingering particles, due to their accumulation in the lower sections of the atmosphere, are unable to be removed or washed away by rain or winds and instead contribute to the critical global issue of climate change. For the Virgin Galactic spacecraft, a space tourism flight lasting around an hour-and-a-half will produce as much pollution as a 10-hour trans-Atlantic flight (6, 11). Recent human activity has been at an all-time high in producing greenhouse gas emissions, resulting in increased weather pattern variation, glacial melting, and rising sea levels. Two-thirds of the world’s cities are located in areas at risk of destruction by sea levels rising at drastic rates, and if human activities continue as it is, we may see places such as New York, Shanghai, Abu Dhabi, Rio de Janeiro, and many others submerged underwater within our lifetimes (12, 13). Yet even as this ever-growing problem continues to expand, the wealthy keep touring. For a 10-minute flight in 2021, Jeff Bezos spent approximately $5.5 billion to experience a short 4 minutes of zero-gravity. Critics argue that Bezos could’ve utilized that money for more altruistic motivations, such as saving 37.5 million people from starvation or fully funding COVAX, a worldwide initiative aiming to secure equal access to COVID-19 vaccines for all (11).

The fields of space exploration and space tourism continue to grow and are sure to become more accessible in the future. The desires and innate curiosity of society remain unquenched, for the seemingly bare yet complex universe surrounding Earth is far from being fully understood. Commercializing space tourism is only the next step in this journey, and our distant dream of leaving our confining atmosphere and viewing the enchanting cosmos firsthand will soon become a full reality. Not only will more jobs be created in the process, but the experience itself will bring about respect and appreciation for our planet Earth (5, 6). Yet as space tourism expands, the consequences will only increase alongside these flights. Large quantities of resources will be exhausted with every growing visitor and climate change’s devastating effects may mark an eventual end to human inhabitation on Earth (12, 13). In enabling space tourism trips for the purpose of personal enjoyment, the home planet intended to be admired and appreciated instead suffers at our very hands.

Citations:

(1) E. Margolis, Space Tourism: Then and Now. National Air and Space Museum, (2021).
(2) M. Leslie, Space Tourism Begins to Take Off. Engineering 10, 4-6 (2022). doi: 10.1016/j.eng.2019.08.006.
(3) C. Giachino, Space Tourism: A New Frontier for Future Generations. Journal of Smart Tourism 1, 31-42 (2021). doi: 10.52255.
(4) S. Leeson, How did tourism become so popular? The World, (2019).
(5) Economic Impact Reports. World Travel & Tourism Council, (2021).
(6) A. Fyall, A. Tasci, Opinion: Space Tourism. Pegasus, (2016).
(7) National Space Society, Why Space Tourism? NSS, (2021).
(8) The Associated Press, 3 visitors heading to the space station are paying $55M each, all meals included. NPR News, (2022).
(9) Virgin Galactic re-opens ticket sales for $450,000. Phys.org, (2022).
(10) S. Cao, What You Pay For Blue Origin’s Spaceflight Depends On Who You Are. Observer, (2022).
(11) N. Shukla, The Environmental Costs of the Space Tourism Business. Earth.org, (2021).
(12) The Climate Crisis – A Race We Can Win. United Nations, (2019).
(13) The Effects of Climate Change. NASA.