Space Perspective prepares for first manned flight after successful test

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Space Perspective prepares for first manned flight after successful test

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Mimi Wright Social media manager | The Points Guy

By Sky Industry News

Dec 27, 2024

Space Perspective, a company specializing in stratospheric balloon flights, is preparing for its first manned flight in 2025. This follows the successful completion of an uncrewed test flight on September 15, 2024. The company aims to offer a unique space tourism experience by taking passengers to an altitude of 100,000 feet.

Co-founder Taber MacCallum and interim CEO Michael Savage discussed the company's plans and the features of their spacecraft, Spaceship Neptune. The capsule can accommodate eight passengers and a captain and will launch from Marine Spaceport Voyager in Cape Canaveral, Florida. "We'll inflate the balloon so it's standing up over the capsule with the capsule secured to the deck of the Voyager," MacCallum explained.

The ascent will take approximately two hours at a speed comparable to bicycling. Once at altitude, passengers will float above Earth's atmosphere for another two hours before descending for a water landing facilitated by a Splashcone at the capsule's base.

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MacCallum shared that he came up with the name Neptune in a dream. "It came to me in a dream," he said. The name holds scientific significance as Neptune's atmosphere consists largely of helium and hydrogen, similar to the lift gases used for balloons.

Space Perspective's operations are regulated by multiple agencies. "Everything we have that flies...is regulated by the Federal Aviation Administration's Office of Commercial Space Transportation as a spacecraft," MacCallum noted. Additionally, shipboard activities are overseen by the Coast Guard.

The passenger experience is central to Space Perspective's mission. The capsule features panoramic windows and amenities akin to those found on commercial aircrafts, including world-class food service and even a restroom called "Space Spa." Richard Branson will co-pilot the first crewed flight alongside MacCallum and his wife Jane Poynter.

Savage emphasized that Branson brings valuable expertise due to his experience as a balloonist. "This is something he is personally very enthusiastic about," Savage stated.

Tickets for this journey cost $125,000 each, with over 1,800 reservations already sold. Some customers have made unique requests such as performing music in space or removing seats for artistic endeavors.

Unlike other space tourism experiences that involve rapid ascents and weightlessness, Space Perspective offers a slow ascent providing views from high altitudes without intense g-forces. "Someone who is too scared to travel on a rocket might do this first," MacCallum said.

Savage highlighted how seeing Earth from such heights can be transformative: "You can look out the window...and realize 'Maybe this Earth isn't as big as I thought it was.'"

Efforts are underway to make these experiences accessible through philanthropic initiatives like Space for Humanity which aims to send educators into space. "Imagine if every school had a teacher who'd actually been to space," Savage suggested.