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Another high altitude balloon company enters the space tourism market

Capitalism in space: Another high altitude balloon company, this time from Spain, is now vying for the space tourism market.

EOS-X Space, a Spanish startup, wants to take 10,000 people to the frontier of space within the next 10 years. With EOS-X Space, the journeys won’t be in rockets or ultrasonic planes. They’ll instead take place in a pressurized capsule propelled by a balloon that will rise to an altitude of up to 40 kilometers, or nearly 25 miles.

This means space tourists won’t have to wear a suit for the duration of the trip, nor will they have to do any physical preparation. Depending on the weather, each trip is set to last four or five hours.

They are targeting the same market as the American company Space Perspectives, which hopes to begin flying tourists on its stratospheric balloon, dubbed Neptune, by ’24.

Genesis cover

On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.

 
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.


The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
 

"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News

5 comments

  • Kevin R.

    I wonder how much it’ll cost?

  • I am familiar with the terms supersonic (Mach 1+), and hypersonic (Mach 5+); does anyone know the parameters for ‘ultrasonic’?

  • Dick Eagleson

    Possibly an artifact of the general numbskullery that is normative in journalism these days. It’s also very possible that this is a translation error, given that the source of the article is the Spanish edition of Business Insider.

  • Cotour

    If you look a bit further into this project I believe it is sponsored by a billionaire nail and beauty solon chain owner who will be providing “Ultrasonic” foot baths and pedicures as you “Sail to the edges of space”, for no extra charge. Its a great promotion tie in. You have not lived until you have had an ultrasonic pedi.

    I think the ticket price is around $150 to 200 K. (Not bad, with the free ultrasonic pedicure that is.)

    Q: What if the balloon envelope fails? Are there any provisions for such an event?

    The first flights I believe are scheduled for April 1, 2024.

  • pzatchok

    Cotour

    Q: What if the balloon envelope fails? Are there any provisions for such an event?

    I was thinking the same thing.
    I am sure they will have parachutes big enough for the craft but the free fall until the chute opens will be like a full minute or even two from max altitude.
    Could you imagine Oprah or a Kardashian making that drop? They would fill their pants before the chute opened.

    One drop like that and the whole new industry would change. I would offer extreme HAL jumps after that.

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