Space tourism may be closer than we think.
With Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson's recent trips to the edge of space, the possibility of space tourism is looming in the near-future. However, while thinking of the exciting technological advancements, people must also consider the multitude of very-plausible concerns.
In this week’s "Connect the Dots" episode, college professors, a space consultant and a high school astronomy teacher discuss the potential realities of modern space travel.
"The two concerns that I have with the kind of vision that Bezos has, or similarly for Musk on Mars, is that one: it risks becoming a very elitist future," said Professor David T. Burbach of the U.S. Naval War College. "Two, does it encourage people to think more about creating a new colony somewhere else and not focus on the problems of earth?" he asked.
For high school astronomy teacher Colin Elliot, his main concerns come from observing humankind’s past.
"Do we want space exploration to follow the same exploration patterns we've seen on Earth?" Elliot asked. "Elon Musk has mentioned people buying a ticket to get to Mars and when they arrive they work to pay the ticket off. That’s indentured servitude," Elliot explained. "We tried that on earth and it was terrible."
The guests expressed that as of now, the approach to the idea of space tourism has been that once these billionaires build these giant technological marvels everything else will magically work out, when in fact, that most likely will not be the case.
"Humans are a pretty conflict prone species," said Burbach. "I'm not so sure if peace will be easy."
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