From the flash-fiction comic books of the 1950’s all the way into the blockbuster feature films of the New Hollywood era, science fiction and space travel have served as the main metaphor for progress and hope that our culture consumes. But in July of 1969, fantasy turned into reality when man was able to take his first steps on the moon. And, while many conspiracies still linger over the matter, space travel has become a widely accepted probability throughout the past decade, leading to multiple space explorations and advances in 2021 and beyond.
Technological innovation pushed the human race to the forefront of space culture, allowing for the exploration of the final frontier. The United States recovered and rebounded from the devastating crashes of the Challenger and restored the public’s faith in space travel. Now, billionaires like Richard Branson and his company Virgin Galactic plan to launch the first mass-commercial space flight next year in 2022. Jeff Bezos has also promised his own version of Space Travel in both 2021 and 2022, and Elon Musk is hard at work on Starship, which might be the first craft to take humanity to Mars. So how did we go from watching a small black-and-white screen of a man walking on the moon to commercial space travel that will allow any citizen (with enough money) to experience the life-changing moment, in real life, for themselves? The answer lies somewhere between the blurred lines of technological advancement, capitalism, and innovative thought that have redefined what we deem possible. What was once a giant leap for mankind, has now become just a costly expense for man.
To The Moon
One of the most pivotal moments in the evolution of culture came during the Cold War when several countries competed against one another in what became known as the Space Race. The mission to the moon would showcase the power of a country and their ability to escape the heating-up circumstances of Earth. The race was propelled by United States President John F. Kennedy who set the goal of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to Earth. Russia entered the competition under the guidance of Mikhail Gorbachev and started with a strong lead, having launched Yuri Gagarin via Vostok 1 into orbit in April of 1961. Gagarin became the first pilot and cosmonaut to journey into outer space.
Each country navigated through several unsuccessful attempts in order to achieve their success. At first, the Russian’s utilized astronaut dogs in early attempts to reach space. The first mission consisted of a dog named Laika who traveled aboard Sputnik 2 in November of 1957. Unfortunately, Laika passed away from panic and overheating just hours after the mission started. In addition to Laika, over a dozen Russian dogs were launchd into space. The U.S. utilized animals during their early flight attempts as well, sending a Rhesus Monkey named Albert II into space via the V2 rocket. Albert II became the first monkey to make it into space in June of 1949. Unfortunately, Albert II died upon impact when his parachute failed to open on his way back down to Earth.
After several successful attempts of launching both animal and man into space, a crew was formed consisting of seasoned cosmonauts Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Edwin Aldrin. The mission, known as Apollo 11, lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center on July 16, 1969. The world tuned in to their televisions sets to see science fiction become reality. When Neil Armstrong first set foot on the moon, the moment was so shocking and surreal that even to this day it's doubted. Some believe the footage was filmed in a studio to keep the Cold War at bay, while others argue director Stanley Kubrick faked the whole thing at the behest of the government. But from Aldrin’s own conviction, which has showcased itself in the recent years, the unimaginable feat was accomplished in 1969 and set the course for future commercial space travel.
Houston We Have a Problem
Even after the success of arriving on the moon, the US was slow to return. To this date, there have been 6 missions altogether, with 12 men having walked on the moon. The idea of going beyond the moon was even more far fetched, as concepts of atmospheres, dangerous conditions, and unsustainable circumstances began showcasing themselves.
One early instance of commercial space travel within the United States was the Challenger flight, scheduled for lift off in January of 1986. The crew consisted of seven crew members: Christa McAuliffe, Ellison Onizuka, Ronald McNair, Judith Resnik, Dick Scobee, Gregory Jarvis and Michael J. Smith. The shuttle broke apart 73 seconds into its flight and killed all seven crew members aboard. The explosion occurred on national television, marking the explosive end to the growing industry of space travel for the next 32 months. Fear was felt around the Earth as mankind was given a reality check at the power of leaving the planet in true Icarus fashion.
After years of preparation and dedication from certain NASA scientists as well as privately innovative investors, space began to re-emerge in the 2010's as a priority due to the rising existential threats of global warming, climate change, and our ability to turn a habitable paradise into an uninhabitable wasteland. Quickly, the power to go to space left the hands of NASA and government funding, and found a new pocket deep within those of commercial billionaires willing to subsidize future travels to space.
The New Masters of the Universe
Several financial barons, whom Tom Wolfe–writer of the ultimate book on astronauts The Right Stuff–would refer to as the Masters of the Universe, began to emerge throughout the 1990’s and early 2000s. These characters included Elon Musk, known for his efforts behind SpaceX, Jeff Bezos who created the space organization Blue Origin, Robert Bigelow responsible for Bigelow Aerospace, and Richard Branson, the mogul behind Virgin Airlines and the space-based program Virgin Galactic. With more money than even imaginable, these key financial figures had the opportunity to donate their nearly unlimited funding into the further advancement of Space Travel.
SpaceX's Falcon 1 became the first privately funded liquid-propellant rocket to reach orbit in 2008. After the success of the mission, privately funded space travel became a viable option. Further developments from SpaceX quickly followed including Dragon in 2010 which became the first private craft to successfully launch, orbit, and recover, and Falcon 9 in 2017 which became the first reuse of an orbital rocket. SpaceX's ultimately development is Starship, a privately funded, fully reusable, super heavy-lift launch system capable of interplanetary spaceflight.
Just as Musk was pushing his way beyond the conventional notions of space travel, Jeff Bezos wasn't far behind, testing out his own series of propulsion systems through the company Blue Origin. Both Blue Origin and SpaceX became close rivals when they vied for the NASA government contract of $2.89 billion to provide a partnership for a 2024 moon mission. Musk narrowly defeated Bezos and SpaceX was awarded the funding for the flight, resulting in a brief Twitter bicker and eventual lawsuit from Bezos over the results.
Bezos didn’t bow down to the pressure though. Shortly after the decision, Bezos launched a Blue Origin rocket utilized for space tourism in suborbital flight featuring a crew that consisted of Wally Funk, Oliver Daemen, Mark Bezos and Jeff Bezos himself. The travel went smoothly and after 10 minutes and 10 seconds in space, the group returned safely.
Pushing the boundaries of commercial travel even further is Richard Branson, known for running the company Virgin Galactic. Having already released a series of reservations for those wanting to go on the first publicly available commercial space flight, the company is expected to launch in late 2022. So far, over 650 tickets have been sold to passengers who will travel to space. The guest list contains several celebrities including Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Paris Hilton, Stephen Hawking, and even space competitor Elon Musk. With reservations costing upwards of $450,000 per seat, it is safe to say that space will follow a similar cast system as that of Earth. But in addition to the large sums of money that will get people out of the atmosphere and into space, there are also scholarship opportunities and lotteries that give anyone the chance to experience viewing Earth from a different perspective.
Sources:
Futurism, FAA, Space, SpaceFlightNow, CBS, BBC, History, Nine, WorldAtlas, Agent4Stars, MSN, Omaze, NASA, BizJournals, NYTimes, ESA, CNN, NewsPunch, Medium, OurPlnt, NBC