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from the deep-thoughts-with-Jeff-Bezos dept.
Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:
It's become increasingly clear that Jeffrey P. Bezos, who in the last several months has been talking much more openly about his once secretive space company, has some really big ambitions in space.
As Blue Origin moves toward its goal of having "millions of people living and working in space," the company has launched and landed the same rocket four times in a row, an unprecedented feat aimed at ultimately lowering the cost of space travel. By 2018, it plans to soon fly tourists on short jaunts past the edge of space in capsules designed with large windows. And earlier this week, Bezos announced plans to fly a new massive rocket, capable of getting to orbit, by the end of the decade.
For his achievements, Bezos, the founder of amazon.com and the owner of The Washington Post, was awarded the prestigious Heinlein Prize Wednesday evening at an event at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. The honor came with a $250,000 award that the multi-billionaire pledged to donate to Students for the Exploration and Development of Space, a nonprofit.
During a half-hour-long question-and-answer period, he offered some additional insights into his vision for how humans will eventually spread out into the solar system, what he hopes his legacy will be and how he competes against other billionaire space enthusiasts such as Elon Musk and Richard Branson. He also talked briefly about what it's like to go back to his high school reunions, and the day The Post opens a bureau on Mars. He didn't mention whether an assignment there would be a promotion or a banishment.
An edited transcript of his remarks is available in the article.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 18 2016, @11:40AM
I do not understand why (a) isn't there one passenger aircraft design that would afford large windows. None. And the one that is part of the "Antarctic Tour", has NO windows. All windows of the current passenger ones are ridiculously tiny and deformed portholes. Would you not pay even as high as double the fare, at least once, to have a ride next to such a window? and b) I do not understand how come this "space tourism" is not a thing yet: any one person with a memory capacity higher than that of a goldfish can remember how all those "private space" companies were about space tourism, and faster-than-airline travel (f.i. Sydney to LA in a half hour and such). That was quite some years ago. When was it exactly that they forgot about this goal, and became all about picking up the ball from NASA? What happened to the original goals? And now this guy is talking about "million people working in space"? Less than 500 people have ever been in space, ever. Plain and simple, I do not believe him.
By 2018, it plans to soon fly tourists on short jaunts past the edge of space in capsules designed with large windows.
Good. I can hardly wait to see how are they going to get around the fact that the horizon always stays flat and always follows you at eye level, as it can be clearly seen from stratospheric balloon footage.
Bookmark this post so you can revisit it in the future: this will never happen. It will take exactly the CGI road of all the rest of the "private space" sector: "somewhere at the ocean" launching site, second hand testimonies, no verifiable feeds, all revamps and sequels of tested NASA crap. Best case scenario, some celebrity actor or other or some military person will claim to have gone "up there" and show you pictures, but never you. Not once, ever.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Sunday September 18 2016, @12:05PM
I do not understand how come this "space tourism" is not a thing yet: any one person with a memory capacity higher than that of a goldfish can remember how all those "private space" companies were about space tourism, and faster-than-airline travel (f.i. Sydney to LA in a half hour and such). That was quite some years ago.
Well, turns out getting into space is hard. Who knew?
And if SpaceX, Blue Origin, or some other company can get launch prices to orbit low enough, then we'll get that space tourism after all.
(Score: 2) by Justin Case on Sunday September 18 2016, @02:44PM
I do not understand why (a) isn't there one passenger aircraft design that would afford large windows.
That's because you haven't designed an aircraft. Try it. Then you'll understand why.
Hint: pressure.
The laws of physics don't give a crap about your sightseeing wishes.
(Score: 2) by tibman on Sunday September 18 2016, @07:46PM
That's the lame excuse. The real reason is cost.
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(Score: 2, Informative) by gmrath on Sunday September 18 2016, @08:20PM
Indeed. Cost, dictated by the immutable Laws of Physics. Pressure, in this case, pressure differential: The higher the pressure differential, the greater the cost. The larger the window, the greater the cost. It all boils down to what you are willing to pay for that sightseeing window. Engineering is physics in action. Engineering is balancing requirements with physics and costs.
(Score: 2) by JNCF on Sunday September 18 2016, @09:13PM
Correct, acrylics and plastics that meet those requirements are expensive. People make bubble canopies for fighter crafts, because the cost is relatively tiny given the small volume of bubble canopies, high total cost of finished fighter jets, and the exreme usefulness of 360 degree line of sight. We also place smaller windows close together when line of sight is less urgent but still useful, as in this 747 cockpit, [wikimedia.org] or this cockpit of a small single engine aircraft. [ytimg.com] It's just not that important that every passenger has a great view. I think OP AC is trying to suggest that this is really a conspiracy to keep the fact that the world is flat hidden. Note the line about the horizon being flat no matter how high you get. This would require practically all pilots to be in on the fix, not to mention all of the other ways we can verify that the Earth is round (like the way that ships disappear over the horizon). I'm not sure if OP AC is trolling or not; if trolling, it was fairly subtle.