space tourism news stories on Newser

For Rent: Slightly Used Space Shuttle Launchpad

Evann Gastaldo — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 12:50:05 CST

Wondering where to park your space shuttle? Consider Cape Canaveral's Kennedy Space Center. "We’re putting out the word officially and unofficially that Kennedy Space Center is open for business," says a chief architect at the facility. "I have a lot of facilities that we, NASA, no longer need," adds Kennedy’s...

Space Tourism Blasts Off

Kevin Spak — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 12:30:15 CST

The year is still nascent, but 2012 may go down in history as the year space tourism finally took flight. This year Virgin Galactic will finally begin launching its much-ballyhooed jaunts into space, the New York Times reports, opening up the heavens to the non-billionaire set. Granted, you’ll still need...

First 'Spaceport' Coming to New Mexico

Kevin Spak — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 14:37:35 CDT

Now that the shuttle's blasted off for the last time, attention is turning to the private space industry, and NPR has found an interesting piece of that puzzle: America’s first spaceport. The structure, under construction in a New Mexico desert, aims to be something like an airport for spaceships, and...

Space Tourism May Warm Planet

Emily Rauhala — Sun, 31 Oct 2010 16:01:35 CDT

Space tourism may sound, well, out-of-this-world, but there is a good chance it will pollute this world, possibly contributing to global warming. As firms like Boeing prepare to launch space tourism businesses , a new study warns that the soot emitted by commercial rockets may get stuck in the stratosphere, notes...

Virgin Galactic Spacecraft Makes First Solo Flight

Rob Quinn — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 04:45:00 CDT

The world's first manned commercial spacecraft has reached a major milestone. Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo was released from the mothership and completed its first solo glide flight over the Mojave Desert yesterday, Wired reports. The craft, which is undergoing rigorous testing ahead of plans to carry paying customers to space and...

Russians Plan to Launch Space Hotel

Rob Quinn — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 08:19:00 CDT

A Russian firm has good news for would-be space tourists worried about lousy food or getting cramped by astronauts performing experiments. Orbital Technologies says it aims to have a "comfortable" space hotel circling the Earth by 2016, the BBC reports. Chief exec Sergei Kostenko says the hotel will have four...

Boeing to Launch Space Tourism Business

Kevin Spak — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 10:04:09 CDT

Boeing would like to fly you to your next vacation destination—in space. The aerospace giant is developing a space capsule that it thinks will be ready to launch tourists by 2015, the company has announced. The capsule will have seven seats, enough to carry a few spectators alongside a...

Space Plane Takes First Test Flight

Harry Kimball — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 11:36:26 CDT

Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo took to the skies for the first time yesterday over the Mojave Desert, an important step toward passenger flights in space in 2011. “This is a momentous day,” says Burt Rutan, who built the craft and its mothership for Richard Branson’s company. The combo flew for about...

Moon Trash Declared National Treasure

Emily Rauhala — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 05:00:00 CDT

California has named the remains of the Apollo 11 mission—including urine containers and space boots—a state historical resource. Experts in the nascent field of space archeology worry that, without preservation, what they call a "sacred site of world history" might be looted by future missions or space tourists....