SpaceX’s leader, Elon Musk, persistently develops the theme of space tourism. The modern technologies ensure the safety of the astronauts while the human desire to conquer another planet is just indestructible. Tesla founder said on Monday that he has a plan how to send two private citizens around the Moon.
Elon Musk strongly assured that in 2108 he’ll realise his another project: the sending two people around Moon. According to SpaceX CEO, it will be a private mission with two paying customers.
The passengers have already paid a ‘significant deposit’ for their tickets to the Moon and they’re are taking heir future space journey very seriously, stressed Elon Musk. The trip to the nearest Moon would take one week: it would skim the surface of the Moon, go further out into deep space, and loop back to Earth — approximately 300,000 to 400,000 miles.
Ticket to the Moon, cost and schedule
The schedule of this fantastic journey is under work, so far, the SpaceX specialists intend to realise this tourist trip in the second quarter of 2018. The Crew Dragon spacecraft with the Falcon Heavy rocket will be used as a transport. In fact, it is not the first Musk’s promise to send a human to space: in 2011, he promised to put people in space in just three years.
The two people who have bought the tickets to the Moon will begin initial training for the trip later this year. Regarding the cost of such mission, Musk referred not to reveal the figures but one ticket on the Russian Soyuz rocket costs NASA around $80 million. In a case of the trip around Moon, a permit from the United Nations will not be necessary. At the same time it’ll require a license of the Federal Aviation Administration.
Musk believes these private missions could be a “significant driver of revenue” for the company and expects to have at least one or two a year, possibly making up 10 to 20 percent of SpaceX revenue.
