Should Regular People Go to Space?

Some people who want a cool vacation aren’t simply planning to leave their state. They don’t just want to leave the country. They want to leave the planet and take a trip to space.

Only about 550 people have ever traveled to space. Most of them were astronauts who had trained for years. But others were people who had piles of money to spend on a ticket. One man paid $30 million to shoot up to space for 12 days!

Now, some companies are letting any healthy person 18 or older go up to space. And for the first time, people will soon be allowed to stay in the International Space Station. This is a lab that flies around Earth.

You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to wonder: Is this a good idea?

Some people who want a cool vacation aren’t simply planning to leave their state. They don’t just want to leave the country. They want to leave the planet and take a trip to space.

Only about 550 people have ever traveled to space. Most of them were astronauts who had trained for years. But others were people who had piles of money to spend on a ticket. One man paid $30 million to shoot up to space for 12 days! 

Now, some companies are letting any healthy person 18 or older go up to space. And for the first time, people will soon be allowed to stay in the International Space Station. This is a lab that flies around Earth. 

You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to wonder: Is this a good idea?

The trip will be a heart-pounding thrill ride. Passengers will blast off at a speed of 2,600 miles per hour. That’s four times as fast as any plane you may have flown on.

As they leave Earth, riders will be able to unbuckle their seat belt for a few minutes. They’ll float around the spaceship, feeling weightless. That’s because there’s no gravity in space to hold them down. (Gravity is the natural force that makes objects fall down to Earth.)

And they’ll have dazzling views of our planet. They’ll see Earth in a way that only astronauts (and maybe aliens) have seen. They’ll also be able to see weather patterns because they’ll be above the clouds.

The trip will be an exciting ride. Passengers will blast off at a speed of 2,600 miles per hour. That’s four times as fast as any plane you may have flown on. 

As they leave Earth, passengers will be able to unbuckle their seat belt for a few minutes. They’ll float around the spaceship, feeling weightless. That’s because there’s no gravity in space to hold them down. (Gravity is the natural force that makes objects fall down to Earth.)

And they’ll have dazzling views of our planet. They’ll see Earth in a way that only astronauts (and maybe aliens) have seen. They’ll also be able to see weather patterns because they’ll be above the clouds.

But space travel can be risky. Almost 20 astronauts have died while going to space. Eleven have died in training. Each rocket ship will have only a few practice runs before it goes up for real.

Life in space can be hard too. There isn’t much room to sleep in a spaceship. Because there’s no gravity, you have to strap yourself down while you sleep so you don’t bump into anything. Going to the bathroom can be gross because astronauts pee and poop in small buckets. They need rubber gloves and baby wipes to clean themselves!

Finally, a ticket to space is expensive. People may have to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for the trip. But more than 700 people have signed up to reserve their seats.

So what do you think about regular people going to space? Is the idea out of this world? Or are these people out of their mind? 

But space travel can be risky. Almost 20 astronauts have died while going to space. Eleven have died in training. Each rocket ship will have only a few practice runs before it goes up for real. 

Life in space can be hard too. There isn’t much room to sleep in a spaceship. Because there’s no gravity, you have to strap yourself down while you sleep so you don’t bump into anything. Going to the bathroom can be gross because astronauts have to pee and poop in small buckets. They need rubber gloves and baby wipes to clean themselves!

Finally, a ticket to space costs a lot of money. People may have to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for the trip. But more than 700 people have signed up to save their seats. 

So what do you think about regular people going to space? Is the idea out of this world? Or are these people out of their mind?