The Commercial Space Industry

1. Historical background: When did the idea of "space tourism" begin? How has it developed? What have been the hurdles and accomplishments? Start in the 1960's - present day.

1962 was the first launch of a satellite by a private company. The Telstar was a communication satellite that traveled in orbit about 3,000 miles above the earths surface. The company that launched Telstar was called Bell Laboratories. (Communications Satellite Industry2017)

In 1990, Congress actually passed a law that allowed private companies to conduct there own space launches. (Stromberg 2014)This new law ordered NASA to pay these private companies their payloads into space when possible.(Stromberg 2014) I think this law is very important and interesting to me because it kind of shows the dying of NASA space launches and the birth of private companies taking over the space industry. 

In 2016, Space X rocket made its first vertical landing. The rocket can now launch from one site, travel into space, launch its payload, and then return vertically back to the earth surface. This is good because it saves Space X a lot of time and money. (Grush 2016) Space X can also reuse the rocket capsule for future missions. The space industry is making big strides in these regards. (Grush 2016)

2) Give a brief summary of the rules and regulations that currently govern the commercial space industry. When and why were they developed? Start with the first rules developed in the 1980s. Do you feel that they are appropriate or that the need to be more or less restrictive?

When compared to the aviation industry, the space industry has a lot more freedom from regulations. The commercial space launch act of 1984, gives the FAA primary oversight of the space industry. (Office of Commercial Space 2017) They regulate launches, re-entry of launches, and operation of launches as carried out by U.S. citizens or while in the U.S. I believe that the current regulations of the space industry are fine the way they are now. (Office of Commercial Space 2017)Companies need this freedom of stringent regulations in order to survive and compete with one another. Space is very unforgiving and there is a lot of things that happen that are completely out of the companies control. I think more regulations would hurt these companies and space exploration in the long run if they became more restricted. 

3) Where do you see space tourism headed and in what time frame? I.e., do you think it will be accessible to the general public, not unlike the commercial airline industry? Do you think it will develop into a means of transportation or do you think that it will perpetually exists as a one-time, bucket list adventure? Why?

I can’t really see space tourism taking off for the general public anytime soon. I don't believe the technology is there or the safety for the general public to get on board with it just yet. I believe when companies can offer affordable travel and gain a better track record with regards to safety then more people will be willing to give it a try. Right now private companies are trying to target the rich to pay for these expensive space tourism flights. I just think the market is to small for any long term profit. These companies are going to have to come up with a new market such as mining in space or more exploration if they want to survive in the future.

4) What are the qualifications to work in the space tourism industry  - either from the pilot or the management perspective? This may require some research, perhaps even making a phone call.

In my findings, I didn't really think the qualifications for space tourism was that bad or hard to get into that field of work. It is a lot like becoming a professional airline pilot in my opinion. Companies require the applicant to have a current FAA certificate with an added instrument rating. They need to have the proper knowledge necessary. The applicants need to have to pass many training test also. (Goehlich 2013)They also need to have a current 1st class medical certificate in order to be an applicant. (Goehlich 2013)I was very surprised with the broadness of the requirements to meet these qualifications. 

References

Goehlich, R. A., Anderson, J. K., Harrold, N. N., Bemis, J. A., Nettleingham, M. T., Cobin, J. M., … Ilchena, N. Y. (2013). Pilots for space tourism. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Retrieved from https://commons.erau.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=ww-graduate-studies

Office of Commercial Space Transportation. (2017, February 27). Retrieved February 27, 2017, from https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/ast/regulations/

Grush, L. (2016, April 08). Breaking: SpaceX successfully lands its rocket on a floating drone ship for the first time. Retrieved February 27, 2017, from http://www.theverge.com/2016/4/8/11392138/spacex-landing-success-falcon-9-rocket-barge-at-sea

Stromberg, J. (2014, September 17). How did private companies get involved in space? Retrieved February 27, 2017, from http://www.vox.com/cards/private-space-flight/private-spaceflight-history-NASA

Communications Satellite Industry. (n.d.). Retrieved February 27, 2017, from http://www.encyclopedia.com/science-and-technology/astronomy-and-space-exploration/space-exploration/communications-satellite