Going Private: The Promise and Danger of Space Travel

Published: Oct 01, 2004
Source: www.space.com



A flurry of space tourism milestones and announcements in recent days signals that human spaceflight is shifting from governments to the private sector, space experts say.

After years of promises, the industry is suddenly blossoming. Yet as regular folks thunder into the unknown, risk will likely grow.

Commercial zero-gravity jaunts became available for the first time this month. A successful manned space flight took place yesterday. And earlier this week, entrepreneurs announced a $50 million prize for the first private orbiting vessel, as well as public flights into space as early as 2007.continue..