space travel
Virgin Galactic starts selling trips to space
Richard Branson sells tickets for a flight into space. The fun costs almost 400,000 euros. Photo: Andres Leighton/FR171260 AP/dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
Space tourism is slowly picking up speed. For a flight into space, however, you have to dig deep into your pocket.
The private space company Virgin Galactic wants to start selling tickets for flights to private individuals.
As of Wednesday, interested space tourists could book corresponding trips into weightlessness for $450,000 – the equivalent of almost €400,000 – said the company of British billionaire Richard Branson. For the sum, customers get 1.5 hours of space flight spectacle in the US, during which Branson’s spacecraft will spend several minutes in zero gravity.
Virgin Galactic isn’t the only company looking to monetize space tourism. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his company Blue Origin have already sent several passengers into space. The demand for tickets for further flights is high.
With Elon Musk, another billionaire with his own space company sent tourists into space. Its four passengers – none of them trained astronauts – spent several days in space last year and orbited the earth several times on board a “Crew Dragon”.