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How to fly into space? What is needed for this and how much does it cost?

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In Soviet times, when our country was one of the leaders in cosmonautics, there was a craze for the profession of an astronaut among the boys. Of course, this profession is still the rarest, but nowadays the desire – I want to fly into space – is no longer an empty dream.

In the 21st century, the rapid development of science and technology has continued. For those who dream about how to get into space, the new century has given hope that in the foreseeable future it will not be so difficult to leave the limits of the earth’s atmosphere.

History of space tourism

Today, there is only one company in the world that has independently designed a space plane for the purpose of organizing private flights into space – Virgin Galactic, owned by Richard Branson. The company loudly proclaimed that soon everyone will be able to use it to get into space at least for a while.

How to fly into space? What is needed for this and how much does it cost?

The famous aircraft designer Bert Rutan undertook the development of the first space plane, from under whose hands Space Ship One first appeared, and then Space Ship Two. These vehicles are being built by Scaled Composites in California’s Mojave Desert and are designed to carry space tourists.

The ship remained in the state of a model for a long time, but despite this, the sale of tickets for suborbital flights worth 200 thousand dollars began at the end of 2004 – immediately after the company was founded. Already in October of the following year, Branson began to recruit crews (6 people) who would participate in the first 16 flights. It was promised that the first hundred customers who paid for their tickets would receive priority on the very first flights.

W. Whitehorn, Executive Director of Virgin Galactic, answering the question whether it is possible to fly into space, said in March 2010 that test flights were planned as early as 2011. In the same month, the VSS Enterprise also made its first three-hour test flight, although the rocket plane did not separate from the carrier aircraft at that time.

People continued to make deposits of different amounts (depending on the queue for the flight), and by the fall of 2014 they had accumulated about eight hundred people. But when one of the vehicles crashed in October 2014, some people began to sober up, and information appeared that 24 failed astronauts had abandoned their plans and demanded their bail.

Flight system in space tourism

The first trial launches of vehicles were made from the Mojave Desert. But in the future, it is planned to move the headquarters of Virgin Galactic and build a new spaceport America near New Mexico. The company also plans to search for possible places for the construction of spaceports in any corner of the world.

What does it take to fly into space? First you need to go through a three-day workout, which itself will be the beginning of an unprecedented adventure. Loads and training will simulate the sensations that passengers will experience during a short stay in space. The crew will consist of two pilots and six passengers.

Video on how to fly into space

flight program

Now directly about how to fly into space. The rocket glider on a special carrier aircraft will rise from the cosmodrome to a fifteen-kilometer altitude, where it will separate and turn on the hybrid engine. Further, the device will climb to a height of over 110 kilometers, which is space for aeronautics, although in fact there is still a very rarefied atmosphere. Gliding will be carried out at a speed of 4000 km / h, which is about 4 times faster than sound. Before reaching the maximum height, the unique design of the wings must turn on – they will be folded before entering the atmosphere under the influence of the Earth’s gravity. Folded wings will slow down the ship, which will gradually slow down and level out in order to enter the dense layers of the atmosphere without turbulence.

The view for the passenger will turn out to be fantastic, as if from the best films about space. The sky briefly changes from blue to dark blue, to purple, and finally to black. At this moment, a person feels as if he found himself in space.

After such a flight, a person can consider himself an astronaut, although in the United States even those who have risen to a height of “only" 80 km are classified as such. From the point of view of the International Federation of Aeronautics, flight at an altitude of 100 km can already be called space flight, since the surrounding atmosphere is so rarefied that it is not able to support any wings. Space travelers will receive a commemorative badge from Virgin Galactic and another badge from the US FAA after their flight.

How much does it cost to fly into space?

At one time, the question of how to fly into space could only be asked by multimillionaires. The first space tourist Dennis Tito flew into space in 2001 for "some" 20 million dollars, but, however, it was on board the Soyuz and much more. After him, about 10 more people parted ways with 20, and some with 35 million dollars to feel like an astronaut.

How to fly into space? What is needed for this and how much does it cost?

Emotions during space flight are impossible to describe. But such an adventure cannot be cheap and affordable for an ordinary person. The introduction of new technologies leaves hope that space walks will be affordable not only for the super-rich, but also for the wealthy.

You can book a ticket for space travel at space agencies accredited in different countries of the world, for which you do not even have to travel abroad. Obviously, there you can clarify how much it costs to fly into space in 2015. The cheapest tickets sold since 2005 cost $200,000. There are three levels of ticket reservation:

  • The first hundred people are considered to be the founders who have invested their deposit in the same amount of two hundred thousand. These tickets have long been sold out.
  • Next come the "pioneers", who are promised a flight within the first year from the moment the practical start of the project. They will be among the first thousand tourists in space. A ticket for them costs less – 100-175 thousand dollars.
  • At the last level are navigators who applied after the pioneers, but they cost them much less – only 20 thousand dollars.

How to fly to Mars?

How to fly into space? What is needed for this and how much does it cost?

The first space tourist, American D. Tito, organized a fund in February 2013 to organize a space walk to Mars in 2018. The project does not even provide for entering the orbit of the Red Planet, however, there were those who wanted to become participants in this flight. What such a walk will cost is modestly silent, but given that Tito forfeited 20 million for his short flight on the Soyuz, then the journey, which should last more than 500 days, should have a truly astronomical cost. Surprisingly, this private space initiative is billed as non-commercial, since it cannot be called a scientific study of the planets of the solar system.

The program is based on a 501-day (the shortest possible) flight around Mars. The flyby trajectory will allow the use of a minimum amount of liquid rocket fuel, and this is critical, since the astronauts have yet to return to earth. Even in the event of force majeure, the ship must be able to return to Earth without shortening the trajectory.

It is in 2018 that the Earth and Mars will be located so close that it will be possible to organize such a fast (only 501 days) flight there and back. The Foundation is ready to send two Americans of different sexes to it. In this case, the ship will have to fly around Mars at an altitude of 160 km, and then return to Earth. The launch is scheduled for January 5, 2018. Flight between Earth and Mars on a flyby trajectory is not often possible, so the next opportunity will not present itself until 2031. In developing the details of the Inspiration project, Mars is going to use the unique developments of NASA and the ISS. Flight in a flyby trajectory is less risky because it does not involve complex orbital maneuvers, docking, or landing on Mars. The launch in 2018 would be beneficial due to the fact that during the flight there would be a minimum of solar activity, which would result in less solar radiation exposure to the astronauts. In 2031, there will be no such coincidence.

Video on how you can fly into space (to Mars )

What happens if a person goes into space?

Many are interested in what will happen if a person gets into space.

  • A person will not die if he spends 90 seconds in space.
  • Once in a vacuum, a person will be conscious for another 5-10 seconds and will be able to actively move.
  • Death in space will come from the lack of oxygen.

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