Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Are You Ready For Commercial Space Travel?
There are possibilities opening up for commercial space travel, albeit very expensive space travel.
Astronauts have recalled instances in which they couldn’t remember where their limbs were (imagine not knowing where your leg was located) or what direction is up or down....
Even the most well-trained astronauts have neared unstable mental states during and after space missions, and understandably so. “The more confined and isolated humans are, the more likely they are to develop behavioral or cognitive conditions, and psychiatric disorders,” NASA explains.
(Via Salon.)
Commercial space travel has long been a staple in science fiction.
But are human beings really ready to do it?
Is private space flight really ready to take off?
Is it crazy to think that we might be close to affordable space tourism?
The Spaceflight Club has been organized by Space Adventures, a private space experiences company.
CSS Skywalker, an orbital hotel designed by Bigelow Aerospace, will consist of a 22x45 foot inflatable space habitat that can be easily configured for its guests.
For a shorter mission, what could people expect to happen to their bodies in space? Doctors in NASA’s Chief Health and Medical Officer, Dr. JD Polk, told Salon that for a “very short flight into suborbital space,” the major issue is Space Adaptation Syndrome — a condition marked by nausea and sometimes vomiting from the "neurovestibular mismatch" when someone first enters space. Space Adaptation Syndrome is also referred to as space sickness, and it can last up to three days. When a human first leaves Earth’s atmosphere, relative directions can become disorientating as the vestibular system — which sends the brain information about motion, equilibrium and spatial orientation — is impacted by the lack of weight in space.
(The cover of Amazing Stories, December, 1939)
Consider the phrase "space liner", which was introduced in the 1930's. Jack Williamson was most likely first in 1931 in his story Twelve Hours to Live:
For three days, Captain Grant had kept his great space-liner, with her rich cargo of uranium salts from the mines on the outer satellite of Neptune and her hundreds of passengers...
(Read more about space-liner)
John W. Campbell wasn't far behind; this excerpt is from Electronic Siege in 1932:
A stream of famous scientists had been coming aboard the space liner Vega all afternoon.
(Read more about space liner)
By the 1950's, the idea of commercial space travel was old hat, and maybe as tedious as a long bus ride; this excerpt is from The Space Merchants, a wonderful 1952 novel by the great team of Frederik Pohl and Cyril Kornbluth:
It wasn't a pleasant trip; it was a miserable trip on a miserable, undersized tourist rocket...
(Read more about tourist rocket)
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 2/27/2020)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 0 )
Related News Stories - (" Space Tech ")
Cislunar Space And The Space Lanes of Golden Age Fiction
'He had travelled the space-lanes of the solar system for the greater part of his life...' - Edmond Hamilton, 1928.
NASA Moonbase Update
'The dinner was excellent. It was completely vegetarian — grown in specially prepared gardens in this Moon base...' - Jim Vanny, 1931.
The Solar Oberth Slingshot
'And if it doesn’t work,' inquired Lazarus, 'what does that make us? Sunspots?' - Robert Heinlein, 1941.
'If Anyone Is Watching Earth...'
'Our study of your race has convinced us that you are not fitted to leave your planet in the present state of your civilization.' - Arthur C. Clarke, 1946.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
Cislunar Space And The Space Lanes of Golden Age Fiction
'He had travelled the space-lanes of the solar system for the greater part of his life...'
NASA Moonbase Update
'The dinner was excellent. It was completely vegetarian — grown in specially prepared gardens in this Moon base...'
Neuralink Will Allow Humans To Communicate With ... Animals?
'Telepaths had their sensitiveness enlarged to an immense range by the pin-sets, which were telepathic amplifiers adapted to the mammal mind.'
Special Lights For Driverless Cars!
'That light is actually the Anamorphic Equalizer...'
'Old People Began to Cross The Continent In Their Own Cars'
'It was a relief to enter one of the comfortable autos, whisper a direction down the tube, and just know that you would be taken to your destination in the quickest, safest, and cheapest manner.'
Harrison Bergeron, Illustrated And Practiced
'But he didn't get very far with it before another noise in his ear radio scattered his thoughts. George winced...'
Starfall Manufacturing Drugs In Space
'The vast spinning sphere of Factory in the Sky loomed above and ahead of us, gleaming white against the unfathomable jet depths of surrounding space.'
The Solar Oberth Slingshot
'And if it doesn’t work,' inquired Lazarus, 'what does that make us? Sunspots?'
'Maybe The Woman Of Your Life Is Still Under Production'
'The Dillard people had performed a miracle and put all the works in a girl-modeled case.'
'If Anyone Is Watching Earth...'
'Our study of your race has convinced us that you are not fitted to leave your planet in the present state of your civilization.'
Epirus High-Power Microwave Defeats Drones
'...the spreading beam of the deranging ray struck them, and Then one toppled and fell. Then another.'
Cloud Of Space Rubbish From China's Long March Rocket
'Within seconds the material was spread out over fifty yards, in a matter of hours it might occupy several cubic miles of space...'
Biomimetic Tendons From Rochu Robotics
'... the curious parallelism to animal motions.'
Living Human Neuron Biological Compute Rack
'The men are dead, but their acquired wisdom lives on and I am the beneficiary.'
Martha Stewart Approves Ojai 'Living Room On Wheels'
'Young people found the driverless car admirable for petting.'
ESA's Draco To Study Heat Of Reentry
'...a synthetic which air-friction would erode.'
