The first orbital honeymoon: the next step in space tourism?

The Space Review ^ | 12/19/05 | Taylor Dinerman

[KevinDavis]

2005 may not have been a good year for George Bush or for the US movie business, but it’s been a great year for the space tourism industry. In October, the history-making SpaceShipOne, the first privately-developed manned vehicle ever to make it into space, was recognized when the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum hung the craft in their Milestones of Flight gallery alongside the Wright Flyer, the Spirit of St. Louis, and the Apollo 11 command module. The next step is underway as Burt Rutan plans to build SpaceShipTwo for Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic, which has already having a certain succès d’estime by getting two semi-famous Irishmen into a hissy spat over which one was the first to sign up for a suborbital flight. Even better, they have reportedly received thousands of applications and millions of dollars in down payments.

Meanwhile, Space Adventures and their Russian partners continue to sell $20-million dollar rides on Soyuz spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS). A Japanese millionaire will be going up in 2006 and other customers will almost certainly follow.

[KevinDavis]

Ok, which freeper should we sponsor???

[KevinDavis]

[Brett66]

Hmmmm, I wonder if you got some call girls and let them take sub-orbital trips and charged a $50,000 dollar premium over the base price of a sub-orbital flight. Be interesting to see if anyone would try this........

[Prime Choice]

The first orbital honeymoon: the next step in space tourism?

Knowing the type and quality of changes the human body endures in zero gravity, I am consistently amused by such ignorant notions.

[Past Your Eyes]

I would think that gravity would play a big part in the consummation of a marriage.

[KevinDavis]

I'm willing...

[ElkGroveDan]

Thta's the second craft in the Smithsonian for Rutan!

[Prime Choice]

I would think that gravity would play a big part in the consummation of a marriage.

You never really appreciate how much work gravity does for you until you try to do even the most simple task in a microgravity environment.

But the real kicker: try getting your honey to feel amorous when they have vertigo, edema, nausea and a skull packed with mucous the consistency of wet concrete.

[RichInOC]

"Not tonight, honey...."

[ElkGroveDan]

try getting your honey to feel amorous when they have vertigo, edema, nausea and a skull packed with mucous the consistency of wet concrete.

Wait a minute...since when does "your honey" need to be in the mood?

[Prime Choice]

Wait a minute...since when does "your honey" need to be in the mood?

Not gonna go there. Nope. No way.

[Semper Paratus]

100 Mile High Club Ping.

[the lone wolf]

If this module's rockin', don't bother knocking...

[org.whodat]

let them take sub-orbital trips

I keep wondering how a suborbital flight got to be outer space??

[SunkenCiv]

Glad US tax dollars go to subsidize (through the construction of the orbiting honeymoon suites, the ISS, not to mention the money spent on building Russian equipment, including boosters) the unique vacations of the very rich.

[Netheron]

Because it is.

You just don't have enough velocity to prevent coming back down, that's all.

[Mamzelle]

Rutan suggested a very similar thing (space is for sex) when he spoke at the University of Texas about a year ago. Not only did he encourage this kind of thinking, but claims it has already happened. I suppose he's hoping to sell two tickets instead of one.

[jmcenanly]

privatespace ping

[Lazamataz]

Ok, which freeper should we sponsor???

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