Space has always been a topic of fascination for the masses. For decades, countries have been spending huge capital on research and development in space exploration. Although this particular domain was exclusive to the government of the nations, on May 31, 2020, NASA sent two astronauts in a commercially built spacecraft manufactured by a privately-owned company, SpaceX. Not just this, on July 11 and July 20, this year, two billionaires, Richard Branson and Jeff Bezos voyaged in a first-of-its-kind trip to space with an all-civilian crew. It simply implies, unlike the 20th century, space is not exclusive to governments anymore. Let us look at some of the privately-owned companies working towards demystifying the world above:
1. SpaceX
The company was founded by Elon Musk in 2002. Since then, it has been working in space transportation, aerospace manufacturing, and space communication. The main goal for SpaceX is to colonize Mars in the coming future, according to Elon Musk, who is very passionate about technology and its future implications. The first operational flight manufactured by SpaceX touched the winds in 2011. Since then, the company has grown exponentially. On May 31, 2020, SpaceX launched its Crew Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station, carrying two NASA astronauts, Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley.
2. Blue Origin
In an interview in 2000, Jeff Bezos was asked if he was not in the ‘dotcom’ business, what else would he do, to which Jeff replied, “If not this, I’d like to go and explore space.” The audience and Jeff himself laughed. 20 years later, Jeff Bezos went to space in a first-ever-all-civilian-crewed spacecraft. Blue Origin’s poster boy is its New Shephard rocket, which is a reusable vertical-takeoff spacecraft. The company’s primary focus is in the field of space tourism and transportation. NASA recently appointed Blue Origin’s team – Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Draper – for their Artemis mission to the Moon.
3. Virgin Galactic
Founded in 2004 by the owner of Virgin Group, Richard Branson, the company’s goals are also along the lines of Space Tourism. The company announced its first flight to space in 2009 but then failed at execution. However, on July 11, Richard Branson became the first civilian to fly to space, in a commercially manufactured spacecraft, with three other employees. The company aims to begin its paid passenger flights service by the year 2022.
4. Orion Space
Founded by Frank Bunger, Orion Span is a company with a vision to start a space hotel. In 2018, the company’s founder laid the vision for a commercial space station called the Aurora Space Station, a combination of a space station and hotel accommodation. The place will be able to hold six people. Orion Span’s objective included a total trip of 12 days in the space hotel, 200 miles above the earth’s surface. The cost for this trip is estimated at $9.5 million per person.
5. Sierra Nevada Corporation
Founded by Jon Chisholm in 1963, Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) is a privately-owned company working in the field of aircraft modification and integration and space components and systems. The company has a long history of working with the US Air Force and NASA. Being a well-established name in space exploration, SNC has been involved in over 400 space missions since its inception in 1963.
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