Dear readers,
Welcome to Quartz’s newsletter on the economic possibilities of the extraterrestrial sphere. Please forward widely, and let me know what you think. This week: Orbital tourism is back, Spire needs a bigger boat (tracking network), and Wozniak’s worries about space trash.
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Go beyond the astronaut experience and the philanthropy, and what does SpaceX’s ability to hurl four private citizens into space really add up to?
Our last big space tourism moment, featuring Jeff Bezos and Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket, prompted a backlash. It was difficult to connect that rollercoaster ride to the edge of space with Bezos’ broader (and admittedly controversial) vision. Inspiration4 might be a better candidate to demonstrate how space tourism connects to a space economy that’s more than luxury adventure.
And not because it’s particularly inspiring. While the trip is cool as hell, it’s not clear that “become super-wealthy” or “win a publicity contest” requires inspiration. Winning a golden ticket to Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory is fun, but it’s not what makes you a role model.
What makes this crew remarkable has everything to do with their lives before their trip to space. A guy who founded a billion-dollar company as a 16 year-old? A childhood cancer survivor who returned to the hospital as a physician’s assistant to care for ill youngsters? A Black woman with a doctorate and a career as a science communicator? Even the most “normal person” on the trip, a Lockheed Martin engineer, served his country in the Air Force, and received his seat from a friend who won a contest; you have to assume he’s a good buddy.
What actually makes this voyage remarkable is that it’s the first all-private mission to orbit. Other recent tourism efforts visited space for a matter of minutes; these passengers will actually stay in space, orbiting the planet, for several days. And, while previous orbital tourists hitched rides on government rockets to government space stations, this time around, it’s SpaceX all the way down—and the crew planned their own itinerary. It’s a confirmation of the vision that NASA had for its new human spaceflight system: A reusable vehicle that could take astronauts to the International Space Station, but that NASA wouldn’t have to pay for entirely because other users would emerge as well.
That was an open question before, but with last night’s launch, that vision became a reality. If all goes well on the three-day expedition, the potential of an automated transportation system to low-earth orbit will have a chance to be realized. That’s a big boost for companies like Axiom Space, which has already reserved a Dragon for a private crew, but also hopes to build a private space station of its own, a vision that NASA itself shares.
That kind of infrastructure might be built for tourists, but it will also be an opportunity to prove out ideas about in-space manufacturing, media production, pharmaceutical research, or solar power generation, one of which might prove to be the killer app for human spaceflight in low-earth orbit.
That’s, of course, if the cost comes down, through economies of scale, smart business plans, and further innovation. Space exploration has always depended on wealthy enthusiasts, but the space economy needs a broader base if it wants to move the needle back on earth.
The favored analogy among enthusiasts for the evolution of space activity is to the early days of aviation, when barnstormers and record-breakers drew attention to a nascent transport technology well before it made good. If so, we might remember Jared Isaacman and company along the lines of Charles Furnas, the first guest on the Wright brothers’ flier, or Abram Pheil, arguably the first commercial airline passenger—consumer pioneers for a frontier industry.
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Imagery interlude
Astronauts traditionally arrived at Cape Canaveral in jets, and the Inspiration4 crew was not exception (it helps that mission organizer Jared Isaacman also owns a private fighter jet company.) Here’s the crew zipping over the launch pad where they planned to lift off:
This photo, like many others from the mission, comes from John Kraus, the terrific space photographer tapped to document this mission.
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Space debris
Ocean awareness. Spire, the satellite data company that went public last month, isn’t sitting on its laurels: It acquired exactEarth, a satellite firm that also tracks ships from space, in a $161.2 million cash-and-stock deal. Space investors are predicting a wave of consolidation in the industry as firms flush with public cash seek to shore up their positions in the market.
Data deluge. Two leading space data companies are expanding access to their insights. Planet, whose optical satellites image the entire earth daily, signed a $6 million contract with NASA that will make its data available across the federal government. And Capella, which collects radar data about the planet, is making a selection of images available to public users who can use them to develop new applications for the relatively novel observations.
Woz space. Silicon Valley legend Steve Wozniak has founded a new space company, Privateer, focused on the space debris challenge. Geeks will love the promo video, but lack of a clear product roadmap (and Woz’s post-Apple resume) should temper expectations until we get more info from the company’s appearance at the AMOS conference this week.
Lander of Opportunity. With its main moon lander plans hung up by Blue Origin’s lawsuit, NASA awarded five new contracts this week to five contractors, including Blue Origin, that are developing technology to put humans back on the lunar surface. The work is ostensibly for future concepts, but could be seen as a way to keep work going at the firms while the lander litigation plays out.
Halfweb. OneWeb, the satellite internet company, has now launched half of its planned 648 satellites, ahead of its goal to offer service in the northern latitudes by the end of this year.
Go for GOES. SpaceX won a contract to launch a US government weather satellite this week at a cost of $152.5 million after competitor United Launch Alliance dropped out of bidding; it’s the third contract for the Falcon Heavy, SpaceX’s largest operational rocket, the company has won this year.
Your pal,
Tim
This was issue 107 of our newsletter. Hope your week is out of this world! Please send your Inspiration4 takes, rumors about space start-ups, tips, and informed opinions to tim@qz.com.