Commercial Space Flights

More affordable space tourism is viewed as a money-making propo­sition by several companies, including Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin, Ar­madillo Aerospace, XCOR Aerospace, Rocket plane, and others. Most are proposing vehicles that make suborbital flights peaking at an altitude of 100 kilometres. P&ssengers would experience several minutes of weight­lessness, a view of a twinkle-free starfield, and a vista of the curved Earth below. Projected costs are expected to be in the range of $100,000 per passenger, with costs dropping over time to $20,000.

Under current US law, any company proposing to launch paying pas­sengers from American soil on a suborbital rocket must receive a license

Английский язык для турбизнеса и сервиса

from the Federal Aviation Administration's Office of Commercial Space Transportation (FAA/AST). The licensing process focuses on public safe­ty and safety of property, and the details can be found in the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 14, Chapter III.

Constellation Services International (CSI) is working on a project to send manned spacecraft on commercial circumlunar missions. Their of­fer would include a week-long stay at the ISS, as well as a week-long trip around the Moon. They expect to be operational by 2008, according to their best case scenario. Space Adventures Ltd. has also announced that they are working on lunar missions, also possibly in 2008 or 2009.

In the long term, orbital tourism may be superseded by planetary (and, later still, interstellar) tourism. Such possibilities have been explored in detail in many science fiction works.

More information about the future of Space Tourism can be found at Space Tourism Lecture, which is a free online handout collection. Since 2003 Dr. Robert A. Goehlich teaches the world's first and only Space Tourism class at Keio University, Yokohama, Japan.

Space Hotels

In the late 1990s, some companies toyed with the idea of creating orbital hotels using discarded Shuttle fuel tanks or inflatable structures, but not much was done beyond feasibility studies.

More recently, American motel tycoon Robert Bigelow has acquired the designs of inflatable space habitats from the TransHab program aban­doned by NASA. His company, Bigelow Aerospace is currently planning to launch a first orbital hotel by early 2006. Other companies have also expressed interest in constructing "space hotels". For example, Virgin executive and billionaire Richard Branson has expressed his hope for the construction of a space hotel within his lifetime.

TEXT WORK

Pronounce correctly and transcribe. Consult the dictionary if

Necessary.

Phenomenon, purpose, pleasure, exceptionally, wealthy, uniqueness, awesome, astronauts, weightlessness, advantage, success, access, aspira­tion, subsidiary, crew, scientific, whilst, resume, venture, charge, main­tenance, decision, entrepreneur, concerns, vehicle, adventure, viewed, suborbital, altitude, twinkle, law, soil, license, circumlunar, scenario, announce, supersede interstellar, future, create, discard, fuel, beyond, feasibility, tycoon, acquire, design, billionaire.

Unit 2. Space Tourism

 

2. Compare and mind the difference:

 

BrE

AmE

to symbolise kilometre starfield

to symbolize kilometer star field

 

Answer the questions.

1. What is space tourism?

2. Who can afford space travelling?

3. Who provides transport for space travels?

4. What are the attractions of space travels?

5. What did intensive space exploration symbolize for many people?

6. Where are these aspirations remembered best? Why?

7. What did people think of space hotels and holidays on the Moon in 1960s?

8. What happened with the importance of space exploration after the Moon landing?

9. What was the situation in Russian space industry in post-Glasnost economy?

10. Who was the first person to fly into space for money?

11. What did he do while in space?

12. How long was his trip?

13. Who was the next space tourist?

14. When did the commercial flights resume?

15. Why did MirCorp seek for potential space tourists?

16. Who is Dennis Tito?

17. Why wasn't he sent to the Mir station?

18. When and how long did Mr. Tito go to the ISS?

19. Who was the next tourist to visit ISS?

20. Why were two other trips cancelled?

21. Why was Russian Soyuz program put on hold for some time?

22. What is the price for a space trip?

23. What is the agreement between American Space Adventures and Russian Rosaviacosmos?

24. How is space tourism viewed by several American companies?

25. What are the suborbital flights?

26. What can a passenger experience on a suborbital flight?

27. What does current US law say to a company proposing to launch paying passengers?

28. What is the licensing process aimed at?

29. What project is CSI working on?

Английский язык для турбизнеса и сервиса

30. What will the trip include?

31. When will they start operating?

32. What will orbital tourism be superseded by?

33. What ideas do companies have about space hotels?

34. What did American tycoon Robert Bigelow acquire? What for?

35. What are the plans of his company and other companies about space hotels?

4. Give Russian equivalents to the following words and word combinations. Find and translate sentences with them in the text.

The recent phenomenon, providing transport, to favor the term, Per­sonal Spaceflight Federation, among the primary attractions of space tourism, awesome and thrilling feelings, extremely intense, mind-bog­gling, status symbol, wide public access to space, mostly, in the form of, aspirations, science fiction, it was common belief that, launched by 2000, space race, signified by the Moon landing, decreased the importance, subsidiary government flights, with the realities of, post-Glasnost econo­my in Russia, crew, daily TV-broadcast from orbit, whilst, it is argued that..., commercial space tourism, to resume, in charge of the space sta­tion, in order to, to offset costs, former scientist, to dismantle Mir, to opt, the second fee-paying space tourist, computer millionaire, boy band singer, due to funding problems, due to health concerns, Columbia di­saster, temporarily put on hold, Soyuz vehicles, dedicated commercial flight, the price for a trip on the Soyuz rocket, money-making proposi­tion, at an altitude of 100 kilometres, twinkle-free starfield, vista of the curved Earth below, in the range of $100,000 per passenger, costs drop­ping over time to $20,000, to focus on, public safety, safety of property, commercial circumlunar mission, a week-long trip around the Moon, according to their best case scenario, lunar mission, in the long term, orbital tourism, handout collection, to toy with the idea, discarded Shut­tle fuel tanks, inflatable structures, motel tycoon, space habitats.

5. Give English equivalents to the following words and word combinations.

Космический корабль(2), МКС, международная космическая станция; космический туризм; с целью личного удовольствия; в настоящее время; доступен только исключительно богатым людям; личный космический полет; уникальность опыта; описанный кос­монавтами (астронавтами); преимущества невесомости; первона­чальный успех; интенсивное освоение космоса; неизбежный; в

Unit 2. Space Tourism

умах многих людей; космическая одиссея; в середине двадцатого века; среднестатистическая семья; начало двадцать первого века; наслаждаться отпуском на луне; уменьшило значимость; пилоти­руемый космический полет; космическая промышленность; было решено разрешить; остро нуждалась в деньгах; японская телевизи­онная компания; неделю спустя; научные эксперименты; частное предприятие; к настоящему моменту; стоимость обслуживания; были заинтересованы; ученый/предприниматель; оба полета были отменены; первый (из упомянутых); последний (из упомянутых); единственный транспорт, имеющийся в наличии; иметь соглаше­ние (договоренность); российское космическое агентство; предпо­лагаемая дата запуска; более доступный; предлагаемые транспор­тные средства; суборбитальные полеты; на высоте сто километров; пассажиры испытают; несколько минут невесомости; получить лицензию; процесс лицензирования; по существующему законо­дательству; пилотируемый космический корабль; предложение включает в себя; недельное пребывание на МКС; ему на смену придут планетарный и межзвездный туризм; изучить в деталях; бесплатная лекция по космическому туризму в Интернете; первый и единственный; космические (орбитальные) гостиницы; совсем недавно; получать проект; создать и запустить первую космичес­кую гостиницу; генеральный директор; миллиардер; выразил на­дежду на...; строительство; при жизни.