CNN LIVE THIS MORNING April 27, 2001; Friday
Will Space Tourism Boom?
STEPHEN FRAZIER, CNN ANCHOR: Space tourist Dennis Tito may be facing a delay in his planned trip to the International Space Station this morning. NASA has decided to extend the space shuttle Endeavour's mission by one day to fix computer problems on board the station. It is considering a two-day extension.
But that extension could hinge on what the Russian space agency has to say. Tomorrow, Russia plans to send a Soyuz spacecraft with Tito on board on its way to the International Space Station. Tito, a Los Angeles billionaire, reportedly has paid the Russians about $20 million for this trip. NASA wants Russia to delay the Soyuz launch, saying the Russian craft and Endeavour can't be docked at the station at the same time because of safety concerns.
Larger issues here: Will Dennis Tito's trip to the International Space Station lead to a stampede of tourists into space? Joining us now from Washington to talk more about this issue: veteran space observer John Pike, who is now director of GlobalSecurity.org, a defense and space policy group.
Mr. Pike, thank you for joining us again.
JOHN PIKE, GLOBALSECURITY.ORG: Glad to be here.
FRAZIER: What do you think: a stampede?
PIKE: Well, it may be a stampede of billionaires. But if you look at the price of that ticket, he's paying a couple of hundred thousand dollars an hour for the privilege of looking out the window. I don't think we're going to be seeing very many more people with that kind of money and that kind of interest in space flight anytime soon.
FRAZIER: He does raise a lot of more significant questions, though, such as: If there is space for him on board there, why don't we put a working astronaut up there?
PIKE: Well, there's space on board right now because the station is still under construction, and the Russian spacecraft has a capacity of three. And, normally, they only fly two up there. Of course, the question of what the ultimate capacity of the space station is going to be, whether there is going to be room even for the planned crew, it's really up for grabs.
NASA has cut back its plans for the habitation module. And I think it's really unclear whether there is going be even room for the planned crew, much less these extra tourists.
FRAZIER: Isn't there a little bit ego involved here,too? I mean, these astronauts spent years in training -- very, very rigorous work -- to prepare for their time in space. And along comes a rich guy who just jumps the line.
PIKE: Well, this has been a longstanding concern on the part of the professional astronaut core, the people who fly in the front seat on the shuttle. But even back in the 1980s, as soon as the shuttle starting flying, you had payload specialists who were going up after only a few months training simply because their company happened to have a commercial communications satellite on board the shuttle.
At the same time, I think that there is a recognition that, eventually, space flight is going to become a little more routine. And just as you had the sodbusters following the mountain men in the American frontier, you are going to have people who don't necessarily have all the right stuff flying in space.
I think that this is a reminder that space isn't just about going up there and doing science. It's also about adventure and having fun. And if we can have fun with this flight over the next week, I'm behind it.
FRAZIER: Well, he is an adventurer -- Mr. Tito -- and he is in terrific shape.
PIKE: Well, I think that this is, frankly, what has made America great: that a guy can start out from very humble beginnings, make some money and then go out and have some fun with that money.
FRAZIER: Well, we're grateful for those insights, both pro and con. John Pike from GlobalSecurity.org, thank you for joining us this morning.
PIKE: Thanks.
copyright 2001 Cable News Network
