Slashdot Mirror


Study Shows Large Space Tourism Market

HobbySpacer writes: "A serious market study has finally been done on space tourism and it shows a substantial market, even for brief sub-orbital flights. The Futron/Zogby study of high income individuals found that 19% would pay $100k for a sub-orbital flight. Furthermore, 7% would pay $20M to go to the Space Station (if they had the money.) The percentages go up if the prices could come down, especially with availability of private orbital facilities. With around 30 million high-net-worth households ($500,000+) in the US, this indicates a market of several million for suborbital on the short term and eventually for orbital. We can hope that like previous expensive luxuries, e.g. jet travel and ocean cruises, the wealthy will pull the prices down to a level reachable by the rest of us."

15 of 189 comments (clear)

  1. Spacesuits? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    Does my bum look big in this?

    1. Re:Spacesuits? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

      How politically incorrect! You're supposed to refer to them as homeless people, or optionally, the residentially challenged.

  2. Re:But How? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    You twist the little metal cap off of the top of the bottle ... how else?

  3. yawn by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    ....the US has already lost this race.

  4. $20M? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    Space aliens charge nothing to go to space, if you agree to have anal sex with them.

  5. Re:Eat It by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    thanks for bringing back the memories of this great tune. my dad and i used to listen to this tape every morning when he was driving me to elementary school. i just sang along to the whole thing, made my day!

  6. YES!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    YES!!! Perhaps by the time I'm old enough to afford it (i'm 20 now) I will be able to actuall experience wightlessness! THANK YOU slashdot for making my month.

    1. Re:YES!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

      Just take an elevator and jump. There you go. I think I'll put that up on eBay. I'll start at 25000$.

  7. Oatmeal. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    Oatmeal tastes like ass. I know this because I eat ass.

  8. Re:Cindy Crawford analogy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    Cindy is such a cum loving slut... last time i fucked her I performed an ATM (ass to mouth) transfer and she slobbed all the green shit off my fuckstick... she'll do anything for a mouthful of man-milk, you just have to ask her

  9. Re:Comparison With Cars by No_Weak_Heart · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    80 years ago(1922) cars were available to your average Joe. And there is a reason for this, and it is not because rich people bought enough expensive toys and "pull[ed] the prices down to a level reachable by the rest of us."

    The reason is Henry Ford had a dream of mass producing cars that would be reasonably priced, easy to operate and reliable. He achieved his dream in 1908 with the legendary Model T, an automobile that revolutionized personal transportation in America. It's impact quickly spread worldwide, with the adoption of assembly line construction methods pioneered by Ford. Ford also paid his workers a decent wage and developed the dealer-franchise networks, things that were needed to pave the way for mass consumption(a necessary but not always present corollary to mass production.)

    By 1912 there were 7,000 Ford dealers across the country. By 1915 1 million Ford cars had been produced. Eighty years ago cars were hardly the "rich man's toy."

    And what space transportation needs to overcome are the very things that the Model T conquered: ease of use, reliability and affordable cost. We don't need rich space tourists - we need a Twenty-First Century Henry Ford!

  10. Re:The X-Prize - Cheap Access To Space by Gorobei · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    I've been pegged at 50 for a while, but you're right: that would be a neat +1 trick.

    I've been considering trying for +50 in a single weekend with a throw-away account - if I ever get bored, look out for the "oops, sorry about that link" trick :)

  11. Re:Who will pilot the ships? by greylnx · · Score: 0, Offtopic
    It was possibly an old Hitchcock episode where the 'sicko' bets a guy that his lighter will light 10 times in a row. The prize was a brand new car -vs- the guys pinkie.

    Proceed with the 'Offtopic' moderation at your liesure.

  12. Re:market study by EuroChild · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    You forgot the option "my left nut"

    --
    Does this make my brain look big?
  13. Re:Who will pilot the ships? by marcop · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    Yes, that was it. Thanks