RocketShip Tours
Encyclopedia
RocketShip Tours is an American
space tourism
company founded by travel industry entrepreneur Jules Klar which plans to provide sub-orbital human spaceflight
s to the paying public, in partnership with rocketplane developer XCOR Aerospace. Klar created RocketShip Tours to act as General Sales Agent for XCOR Aerospace.
Jules Klar got his start in the travel business in New York City
in 1961. He founded $5-A-Day Tours in partnership with Arthur Frommer
of Frommer's
fame. Klar's company, Great American Travel became one of the most successful wholesale travel organizations in America through the succeeding years. The company's space tourism package includes screening, training and a trip into suborbital space. Jules selected XCOR Aerospace to partner with, due to its record of reliable rocket engine development and technological approach towards suborbital space travel
.
Designed and built by XCOR Aerospace, the Lynx rocketplane
will have four liquid rocket engines at the rear of the fuselage
burning a mixture of LOX-Kerosene and each of them will give between 2500-2900 lbf (11 120-12 900 N) of thrust. The Lynx is projected to carry one pilot, a ticketed passenger, and/or a payload or small satellites above 100 km altitude. The occupants would wear pressure suits made by Orbital Outfitters. The Lynx was initially announced on March 26, 2008, with plans for an operational vehicle within two years. That date has since fallen to late 2011.
Mark I Prototype
Maximum Altitude: 61 km (200,000 ft)
Primary Internal Payload: 120 kg (265 lbs)
External Dorsal Mounted Pod: 280 kg (617 lbs)
Secondary payload spaces include a small area inside the cockpit behind the pilot or outside the vehicle in two areas in the aft fuselage fairing.
Mark II Production Model
Maximum Altitude: +100 km (+330,000 ft)
Primary Internal Payload: 120 kg (265 lbs)
External Dorsal Mounted Pod: 650 kg (1433 lbs) and is large enough to hold a two stage carrier to launch a microsatellite or multiple nanosatellites into low Earth orbit.
Secondary payload spaces include the same as the Mark I.
. It is expected that the spacecraft will be piloted by Richard A. Searfoss
, a retired United States Air Force
colonel, NASA
Astronaut
and current XCOR test pilot
. The craft is projected to be a one passenger, one pilot rocketplane. Its planned trajectory will overlap the Earth’s atmosphere at 70,000 feet (21,000 m), which will make it a sub-orbital
journey with a short period of weightlessness. The spacecraft, the Lynx rocketplane
, is a Suborbital rocket-powered aircraft
being developed by the California-based company XCOR Aeorospace. When operational, the vehicle will fly over 100 km (the Kármán line
, a common definition of where "space" begins). The time from liftoff of the Lynx until the touchdown of the vehicle after the sub-orbital flight will be about 1.0 hour. The sub-orbital flight itself will only be a small fraction of that time. The weightlessness will last approximately 5 minutes.
market.
, where XCOR Aerospace is constructing the spacecraft. RocketShip Tours expects that initial passenger flights will take place there, as well.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
space tourism
Space tourism
Space Tourism is space travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. A number of startup companies have sprung up in recent years, hoping to create a space tourism industry...
company founded by travel industry entrepreneur Jules Klar which plans to provide sub-orbital human spaceflight
Sub-orbital spaceflight
A sub-orbital space flight is a spaceflight in which the spacecraft reaches space, but its trajectory intersects the atmosphere or surface of the gravitating body from which it was launched, so that it does not complete one orbital revolution....
s to the paying public, in partnership with rocketplane developer XCOR Aerospace. Klar created RocketShip Tours to act as General Sales Agent for XCOR Aerospace.
Jules Klar got his start in the travel business in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1961. He founded $5-A-Day Tours in partnership with Arthur Frommer
Arthur Frommer
Arthur Frommer is a travel writer, publisher and consumer advocate, and the founder of the Frommer's series of travel guides and Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel magazine. He has published many books for budget-conscious travelers and has been one of America's foremost budget travel authorities...
of Frommer's
Frommer's
Frommer's is a travel guidebook series and one of the bestselling travel guides in America. The series began in 1957 with the publication of Arthur Frommer's book, Europe on $5 a Day. Frommer's has expanded to include over 350 guidebooks across 14 series, as well as other media including the award...
fame. Klar's company, Great American Travel became one of the most successful wholesale travel organizations in America through the succeeding years. The company's space tourism package includes screening, training and a trip into suborbital space. Jules selected XCOR Aerospace to partner with, due to its record of reliable rocket engine development and technological approach towards suborbital space travel
Space travel
Space travel can refer to:*Spaceflight, the use of space technology to fly a spacecraft into and through outer space, which may include:*Spacefaring, capability of and activity in the art of spaceborn travel.*Human spaceflight...
.
Spacecraft
Lynx rocketplane
The Lynx rocketplane is a suborbital horizontal-takeoff, horizontal-landing ,rocket-powered spaceplane being developed by the California-based company XCOR to compete in the emerging suborbital space flight market. The Lynx is projected to carry one pilot, a ticketed passenger, and/or a payload or...
will have four liquid rocket engines at the rear of the fuselage
Fuselage
The fuselage is an aircraft's main body section that holds crew and passengers or cargo. In single-engine aircraft it will usually contain an engine, although in some amphibious aircraft the single engine is mounted on a pylon attached to the fuselage which in turn is used as a floating hull...
burning a mixture of LOX-Kerosene and each of them will give between 2500-2900 lbf (11 120-12 900 N) of thrust. The Lynx is projected to carry one pilot, a ticketed passenger, and/or a payload or small satellites above 100 km altitude. The occupants would wear pressure suits made by Orbital Outfitters. The Lynx was initially announced on March 26, 2008, with plans for an operational vehicle within two years. That date has since fallen to late 2011.
Mark I Prototype
Maximum Altitude: 61 km (200,000 ft)
Primary Internal Payload: 120 kg (265 lbs)
External Dorsal Mounted Pod: 280 kg (617 lbs)
Secondary payload spaces include a small area inside the cockpit behind the pilot or outside the vehicle in two areas in the aft fuselage fairing.
Mark II Production Model
Maximum Altitude: +100 km (+330,000 ft)
Primary Internal Payload: 120 kg (265 lbs)
External Dorsal Mounted Pod: 650 kg (1433 lbs) and is large enough to hold a two stage carrier to launch a microsatellite or multiple nanosatellites into low Earth orbit.
Secondary payload spaces include the same as the Mark I.
Overview
Suborbital flight tickets are now available ($95,000 per person with a $20,000 deposit). The initial deposit qualifies the passenger for a four day orientation, medical screening and G-Force training at an Arizona resort. A final payment is required to take the flight aboard the Lynx rocketplaneLynx rocketplane
The Lynx rocketplane is a suborbital horizontal-takeoff, horizontal-landing ,rocket-powered spaceplane being developed by the California-based company XCOR to compete in the emerging suborbital space flight market. The Lynx is projected to carry one pilot, a ticketed passenger, and/or a payload or...
. It is expected that the spacecraft will be piloted by Richard A. Searfoss
Richard A. Searfoss
Richard Alan Searfoss is a retired United States Air Force colonel, NASA Astronaut and test pilot.-Early life:Searfoss was born on June 5, 1956, in Mount Clemens, Michigan, but considers Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to be his hometown...
, a retired United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
colonel, NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
Astronaut
Astronaut
An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft....
and current XCOR test pilot
Test pilot
A test pilot is an aviator who flies new and modified aircraft in specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques or FTTs, allowing the results to be measured and the design to be evaluated....
. The craft is projected to be a one passenger, one pilot rocketplane. Its planned trajectory will overlap the Earth’s atmosphere at 70,000 feet (21,000 m), which will make it a sub-orbital
Sub-orbital spaceflight
A sub-orbital space flight is a spaceflight in which the spacecraft reaches space, but its trajectory intersects the atmosphere or surface of the gravitating body from which it was launched, so that it does not complete one orbital revolution....
journey with a short period of weightlessness. The spacecraft, the Lynx rocketplane
Lynx rocketplane
The Lynx rocketplane is a suborbital horizontal-takeoff, horizontal-landing ,rocket-powered spaceplane being developed by the California-based company XCOR to compete in the emerging suborbital space flight market. The Lynx is projected to carry one pilot, a ticketed passenger, and/or a payload or...
, is a Suborbital rocket-powered aircraft
Rocket-powered aircraft
A rocket-powered aircraft or rocket plane is an aircraft that uses a rocket for propulsion, sometimes in addition to airbreathing jet engines. Rocket planes can achieve much higher speeds than similarly sized jet aircraft, but typically for at most a few minutes of powered operation, followed by a...
being developed by the California-based company XCOR Aeorospace. When operational, the vehicle will fly over 100 km (the Kármán line
Karman line
The Kármán line lies at an altitude of above the Earth's sea level, and is commonly used to define the boundary between the Earth's atmosphere and outer space...
, a common definition of where "space" begins). The time from liftoff of the Lynx until the touchdown of the vehicle after the sub-orbital flight will be about 1.0 hour. The sub-orbital flight itself will only be a small fraction of that time. The weightlessness will last approximately 5 minutes.
Competition
Besides RocketShip Tours, there are numerous other companies actively working on commercial passenger suborbital spaceflight.Additionally, there are several others developing commercial manned orbital spaceflight capability (including some which are initially designed for, or may eventually be used for, commercial passenger spaceflight), which is a significantly more difficult problem than suborbital spaceflight. Currently, tickets are available through the XCOR partnership with RocketShip Tours. Priced at $95,000, they are expected to be around half the cost of those quoted by current competitors in the commercial sub-orbital spaceflightSpaceflight
Spaceflight is the act of travelling into or through outer space. Spaceflight can occur with spacecraft which may, or may not, have humans on board. Examples of human spaceflight include the Russian Soyuz program, the U.S. Space shuttle program, as well as the ongoing International Space Station...
market.
Base
Test launches are planned to take place from the Mojave SpaceportMojave Spaceport
thumb|right|235px|A retired [[Boeing 767-200]] that flew for [[Ansett Australia]] being cut open for scrap at Mojave AirportThe Mojave Air and Space Port , also known as the Civilian Aerospace Test Center, is located in Mojave, California, at an elevation of...
, where XCOR Aerospace is constructing the spacecraft. RocketShip Tours expects that initial passenger flights will take place there, as well.
See also
- Commercial AstronautCommercial AstronautA commercial astronaut is a person trained to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a privately funded spacecraft.-Criteria:The criteria for determining who has achieved human spaceflight vary. The FAI defines spaceflight as any flight over of altitude...
- List of private spaceflight companies
- Space AdventuresSpace AdventuresSpace Adventures, Ltd. is a Virginia, USA-based space tourism company founded in 1998 by Eric C. Anderson. , offerings include zero-gravity atmospheric flights, orbital spaceflights , and other spaceflight-related experiences including cosmonaut training, spacewalk training, and launch tours...
- Space colonizationSpace colonizationSpace colonization is the concept of permanent human habitation outside of Earth. Although hypothetical at the present time, there are many proposals and speculations about the first space colony...
- Space tourismSpace tourismSpace Tourism is space travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. A number of startup companies have sprung up in recent years, hoping to create a space tourism industry...
- Space Tourism SocietySpace Tourism SocietyThe Space Tourism Society was founded in 1996. It is the first organization specifically focused on the space tourism industry.Their stated goals, quoted from their :"To conduct the research,build public desire,...
- XCOR AerospaceXCOR AerospaceXCOR Aerospace is an American private rocket engine and spaceflight development company based at the Mojave Spaceport in Mojave, California. XCOR was formed by former members of the Rotary Rocket rocket engine development team in September, 1999...