Is the Backlash to the Titan Tragedy Coming for the Space Industry?

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Recent Axiom Space crew that visited the International Space Station. (Axiom Space)

Axiom has an interesting article, “Titanic Sub Tragedy Stokes Fears for Space Tourism,” on how the recent Titan tragedy may impact the space tourism industry, noting:

Congress has explicitly prohibited the Federal Aviation Administration from enacting any regulations designed to protect the safety of people flying into space. It can only concern itself with the safety of people on the ground.

That may not be an acceptable state of affairs after last week. Yet Congress seems to have little focus these days, so it is unlikely it will get involved in new regulations. So potential passengers beware because your government is not really all that engaged in your welfare.

One big difference between a sea versus a space mission is that I do not foresee an extended rescue mission at taxpayer expense. While the Titan exploded in an environment that made it difficult to locate, involving enormous resources to find the wreckage, any space explosion or incident will be easy to see from the ground and come to a quick close with little need for additional resources. That may not sound good to the tourists on the spacecraft, but it is one less thing the taxpayers need to worry about.

Space Quote: NASA and Another Type of Tourism

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): OceanGate’s Titan submersible. (Associated Press)

“OceanGate is doing for deep sea exploration, discovery, and research what companies like SpaceX, Blue Origin, World View, and Virgin Galactic are doing for space exploration and discovery…I look forward to supporting OceanGate’s effort to document the Titanic and its role as a deep ocean artificial reef when I join the expedition as a crewmember this summer.“

-Statement by NASA planetary scientist Alan Stern in an OceanGate press release from March 2022. Dr. Stern is best known for his role as the principal investigator of the New Horizons mission to explore Pluto and the Kuiper Belt. The press release also discusses NASA’s assistance to OceanGate in the development of the Titan submersible that is still lost in the Atlantic after a mission to take tourists to see the late Titanic. While Dr. Stern mentions exploration and discovery, this was simply tourism gone wrong. Tourism is a lucrative aspect of the four space companies listed above, but it is not without its risks. Fortunately, Dr. Stern had a good trip last summer, and we can only hope the five individuals on the Titan will also return safely to the surface.

Virgin: Tourism Wins Over Commercial Cargo

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Credit: Virgin Galactic

While Virgin Orbit failed back in April, Virgin Galactic is going strong and planning to start its tourism business in August. But first it has a scientific mission later this month.

Here is the word from Virgin Galactic:

While carrying satellites into space is no longer on the menu, bringing scientists to space for work is still part of the plan. But with many individuals willing to pay $450,000 apiece to experience the weightlessness of space, it appears tourism is the winner here.

I am not sure what that says about commercial space stations. Would they be better as floating hotels or casinos? Maybe so, as we learned in an Architectural Digest story late last year titled “A Space Hotel Could Open as Soon as 2025” (see image below).

Image (Credit): Artist’s rendering of the Voyager Station. (Orbital Assembly Corporation)

Not Again: Boeing Still Isn’t Ready for a Crew-Carrying Starliner

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus supply ship delivering cargo to the ISS. (NASA)

If you were eager to see the first flight of Boeing’s Starliner with a human crew, you will just need to wait a little longer. The original plan was to send two astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) on July 15, after many earlier delays. But now Boeing said it still needs time to fix a few issues, including “adhesive tape that’s flammable and defects with the spacecraft’s parachute system,” according to NPR.

Boeing made this statement on June 1:

Boeing’s priority for Starliner’s Crew Flight Test is the safe launch, docking and return of Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams. For that reason, we have recommended to NASA that we reevaluate our launch window to allow for closing out the remaining technical and certification items.

Starliner is already about six year behind schedule at this point. That does not mean safety takes a back seat, but it does make you wonder about Boeing’s ongoing role in the ISS transport business.

We need at least two strong companies to support the ISS and future missions, but maybe Boeing is not up to the task and NASA should be looking for another partner, such as Northrop Grumman, which has already been busy shipping cargo to the ISS, or even Blue Origin, which is now part of the Artemis Moon mission.

Two Space Stations, Two Stories

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): The three Chinese astronauts who left for the Tiangong space station this week. (VCG/VCG via Getty Images)

This week astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) said goodbye to the second set of private astronauts who are part of the Axiom Space mission, while China sent its first non-military astronaut to its Tiangong space station. It is not surprising that China started out with military astronauts. NASA also recruited from the US military for its early astronauts, and still does today. Yet it is encouraging that China is already shifting to scientists.

So while China is following the expected trajectory towards more scientists, the ISS (and more particularly its US partners) is shifting towards greater tourism since Axiom missions are for quick flybys rather than deep research. For instance, the “astronauts” on the second Axiom mission were on the ISS for about a week. At least the second mission included a few scientists, whereas the first Axiom mission consisted of wealthy investors.

With commercial space stations in development, we can expect to see tourism as a key piece of the space industry, as we already see with SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Virgin Galactic. China is not far behind, indicating that it wants to find ways to be part of the space tourism industry as well.

Maintaining the right balance between the militarization of space, real science, and tourism will not be an easy balance, as we watch it all in play this week. I would rather see more tourists than military crews in space, but I am hoping we can find a way to keep the scientists fully engaged and the main players for now. Space mining and related industries will probably beat all of these other uses, but we are not at that stage just yet.