Richard Branson was happy to enter space with an aircraft developed by his own company, Virgin Galactic. This means that civilian space travel will be a reality in the near future.
As reported, the British man used a VSS Unity aircraft to reach a sub-orbital altitude of 88 kilometers. Later, space travelers will get a similar experience, seeing the beauty of the Earth from there.
However, for the near future, space tourism is definitely for the rich. Yes, the reality is that for the average person, traveling this way will not be possible with their pockets.
“While Richard Branson announced that the average person could win a seat to fly in the future, for the average person on the planet, the prospect of space travel is unattainable,” Sky News said.
"After landing, Richard Branson also said that future astronauts will not be limited by their gender, race or background. But in fact, that day seems far away," he added.
Virgin Galactic was founded in 2004 and since then, has sold 600 tickets to people looking to go into space. It costs about USD 250 thousand for one way, takes about 1.5 hours. It is this price factor that makes it difficult for ordinary people to buy it.
Prospective tourists who have waited long enough to fly this still have to be patient. Virgin Galactic plans to run two more trials and possibly commercial flights will be implemented in 2022.
The good news is that over time, tickets may get cheaper. Especially if a competitor company emerges. Currently, Virgin Galactic and Richard Branson’s main rival in the space tourism business is Blue Origin, which is owned by the world’s richest man, Jeff Bezos.
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