CEO of SpaceX Elon Musk announced today that two individuals (that are currently anonymous, but I would guess not for too long) approached the company with the interest to fly around the moon. According to Musk, they have paid a “significant deposit,” although he declined to elaborate on how much or what the total cost of the trip is at this moment. He did say, however, that the cost would be something comparable to taking a citizen to the International Space Station. This is partially up for speculation, although the numbers could be anywhere from 35-80 million dollars, theoretically. However, there are other factors, such as the spacecraft and launch location, that have not been taken into account.
The flight is set to take place sometime in 2018. We know that the passengers will be flying in a Crew Dragon spacecraft, which will be launched initially by a Falcon Heavy rocket. This is set to the longest charter flight in history, set somewhere between 300.000 and 400,000 miles. The Crew Dragon will be an autonomously operating craft, which minimizes any potential problem that might arise from human error.
Musk stated that they intend to conduct physical fitness tests and start training later this year.
Musk also stated that this could be a big source of revenue for SpaceX. Anywhere from 10 to 20 percent of it’s total revenue, actually.
Therefore, we can be sure that we will see more and more of these private space flights in the future.
NASA will be given priority if they are interested in going, according to Musk. Sort of like a Disney Fast Pass, but for a much more expensive ride.
Is there any risk? Of course. Elon Musk says that the prospects are well aware that there are inherent risks.
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