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NASA Moves Forward With International Space Station 'Hotel' (fool.com) 90

Posted by EditorDavid from the staying-over-night dept.
Last June NASA announced plans to host visitors on the International Space Station for just $35,000 a day.

"And now we know where they'll be sleeping," reports the Motley Fool: Earlier this week, NASA announced that it has selected Axiom Space to build "at least one habitable commercial module to be attached to the International Space Station...." In this particular demonstration project, Axiom will deliver to the ISS an "element" which "will attach to the space station's Node 2 forward port," giving access to the rest of the space station, and also a place for weary private astronauts to lay their heads at night...

"Developing commercial destinations in low-Earth orbit" is a priority for NASA, explains the agency -- whether those destinations are attached to the ISS or not... The "habitable commercial module" that Axiom is building will facilitate onboarding private businesses to do work on the ISS, creating potential new revenue streams to subsidize NASA's more adventurous endeavors farther out from Low Earth Orbit. With NASA's budget today stuck below where it was in 1972 -- the year of America's last crewed mission to the moon -- the agency's going to need significant new funding to perform planned missions to Mars and beyond in future years. If Congress won't pony up additional cash, therefore, the agency may hope to raise cash from private industry...

NASA says it "also plans to issue a final opportunity to partner with the agency in the development of a free-flying, independent commercial destination" at some point in the future. This latter opportunity should be of particular interest to both Axiom and Bigelow -- which, like Axiom, has expressed interest in building its own space stations independent of the ISS.
"If Axiom succeeds in building and operating a commercial space station," writes Axios, "it will mark a turning point for how space is used and who has access to it..."

They also report that Axiom expects to procure flights to the ISS from both SpaceX and Boeing. And when the International Space Station reaches its end-of-life, "Axiom plans to remove its modules and become a free-standing station that can be accessed by the company's customers."
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NASA Moves Forward With International Space Station 'Hotel' More

NASA Moves Forward With International Space Station 'Hotel'

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  • With all those people banging around, they'll knock the thing out of orbit.

    And we know how well airline passengers behave.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Cito ( 1725214 )

      Some of that middle east oil money will sponsor some terrorist to go suicide bomb the space station. Mainstream media will make them Uber famous, not to mention bragging rights on blowing up the ISS. Also the massive debris field that could cascade into a Kessler syndrome event.

  • I spent a week there one night. Oh and stay away from that clip joint night club "Cosmic Ray's". He waters down his booze with condensate from the window.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by dwywit ( 1109409 )

      "The Draco Tavern" has first claim for a space bar.

      And, yes, I would spend enough there to have my own booth.

      Perhaps I could join the Chirpsithra for some mild electrical stimulation.

  • About Axios (Score:5, Interesting)

    by lgw ( 121541 ) on Sunday February 09, 2020 @09:49PM (#59709252) Journal

    For those unfamiliar with the situation, the ISS is nearing the end of its useful life. The Axios plan is to build a new space station in orbit, by hauling up the pieces and attaching them, using the ISS as an anchor and base of operations. This is much easier than assembling them in obit otherwise. Once the new station is large enough to inhabit, it can detach permanently from the ISS, and continue assembly as desired using itself as the base. Bootstrapping FTW!

    Fun fact: the ISS is the most expensive structure ever built by mankind, and in a few more years we will destroy it.

    • in a few more years we will destroy it.

      It seems like from reports I've read, that destruction is probably a good idea. Over time the station has had mold problems [sciencemag.org] that continue to grow, among other things... it's one thing to keep up kind of a ratty dwelling for a long time down on the ground, but on Earth after electronics and systems have had enough time to start getting internal problems you cannot easily resolve, better to rebuild and/or toss.

      Even though it was very expensive, we have derived a ton of

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by lgw ( 121541 )

        The Russians claim the mold on the outside of the ISS is "space mold" that grew there, without coming from inside the station. I wish I knew what they were basing that on, because it's a very interesting claim.

        • I wish I knew what they were basing that on, because it's a very interesting claim.
          On the Mir they had the same problem.

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by lgw ( 121541 )

            Sure, but the idea that the mold is just floating around in space and happened to collect on the station is bizarre. Marvelous if true, but extraordinary claims ...

            • Re: (Score:2)

              by _merlin ( 160982 )

              One theory I've heard is that it's present in comets, and when material comes off in the comet tail, there's mold in it. There's bits of comet tail dispersed all through the solar system, and some of it gets collected on spacecraft.

              • Re: (Score:2)

                by lgw ( 121541 )

                Sure, but that would mean life evolving off Earth, which would be one heck of a discovery! You'd think someone would have collected a sample of the ,old for analysis by now.

        • And apparently it thrives on radiation, like the mold that is feeding on the Chernobyl left-overs. In Russia, the mold cleans you.

    • It's so great that we made such a fantastic playground for the uber-rich while people are suffering right here on Earth. How many people could have had clean drinking water if we spent that money more responsibly?

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by lgw ( 121541 )

        Perhaps we could spend the money responsibly by creating jobs designing and building things? You understand that money spent in a space program isn't actually spent in some kind of space mall, right? That all that money is the budget for companies that hire people to design and build stuff? For the ISS, it's companies around the world - the US, Russia, the EU, Japan, and so on.

        Are you really just upset that people are spending money on the things they like instead of the things you like? It really sound

        • That you must donate your own money before being able to criticize government mismanagement of funds is a common far-right trope. Did you absorb this idea from special ed or anime club?

      • Any playground for the uber-rich in space will be private, not public. These are people who could just as easily spend their money on hookers and blow.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Nidi62 ( 1525137 )

        It's so great that we made such a fantastic playground for the uber-rich while people are suffering right here on Earth. How many people could have had clean drinking water if we spent that money more responsibly?

        Well, unless they are shipping up bottles of Evian, technology used to generate water for the uber-rich space hotel could potentially filter it's way back down to earth, leading to better water access.

    • I checked the cost of Cheops pyramid (google immediately answers it in a post-processed search format ) as $5B. It stroke me as odd, so I did my calculations.

      >14,500 people and a peak workforce of roughly 40,000

      > Without the use of pulleys, wheels, or iron tools, they used critical path analysis methods, which suggest that the Great Pyramid was completed from start to finish in approximately 10 years

      Estimating the modern cost of simple food and lodging of 400,000 man years without families:

      - minimum f

      • note that Egyptians had 365 business days a year for slaves and 16 hour work days
        The only slaves in Egypt where prisoners of war, usually released after about five years, and criminals doing heavy crimes like rape and murder, they used to work in quarries.

        Estimating the modern cost of simple food and lodging of 400,000 man years without families:
        The workers lived close by with families in villages made for them.

        If you want to compare costs, then try to count the amount of beer / bread they consumed and tran

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

      The Russians are still thinking about keeping their bits flying, or maybe selling them off. And then you have the Japanese module, they might want to keep that attached to something that is a going concern.

      I expect a lot of it will end up being reused.

    • Useful life of ISS is much longer than said.

      What we need of course is a station with a big wheel for simulated gravity.

      That could be attached to existing station.

      If ISS is near end of life, move it to L4 and put a commercial user in it to take captured NEO asteroids like Apophis repositioned into ellipsis L4.

  • Yeah, that's going to end well. Your "visit" may end up as a parabolic arc around the sun for the next 40,000 years.

  • As always, only rich fucks will have access to it.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by blindseer ( 891256 )

      As always, only rich fucks will have access to it.

      The same could be said at some point in time for indoor plumbing, refrigerators, and the personal computer.

      I remember seeing this Youtube video that commented on economic development in Africa. The narrator seemed very upset about how bringing new jobs would create wealth disparity. OH NOES!!! We can't have wealth disparity!! Or, we can leave everyone living in huts made of mud and grass, drinking from water contaminated with filth, and left ignorant for lack of schools or enough time away from working

      • Wealth disparity is necessary for an economy to function. Excessive disparity leads to political power imbalance and a loss of social cohesion, occasionally to the point of riots and attempted revolution.

        • And said riots form a necessary social function, as they burn off some of the hotheads who would otherwise damage the social fabric by continuing to exist.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by Whibla ( 210729 )

          Excessive disparity leads to political power imbalance and a loss of social cohesion, occasionally to the point of riots and attempted revolution.

          Absolutely true!

          Wealth disparity is necessary for an economy to function.

          This, however, sounds more like an article of faith than a universal truth. I guess the obvious analogy would be that you require an energy difference to do useful 'work', but wealth is not analagous to energy within an economy. I might be missing something obvious however, so I'd appreciate it if you could lay out your logic for the above assertion.

          • Firstly, income disparity is how the labor market balances. If there is a shortage of a skill, then those who hold that skill can command higher pay, which motivates people to move into that field as a career, correcting the shortage. There are some sectors where that doesn't really apply, but it's the general rule, and the reason that the middle class exists. It requires that some professions pay more than others.

            Secondly, even if income levels were all entirely equal, expenses would be. Some people just w

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by hipp5 ( 1635263 )

        Yeah, I remember the dad of the rich kid in my school bought a DVD player for $900. Now I can get one for $20 (but why would I even want one). Thanks Mr. Rich Fuck for being the early adopter.

        As a more apt comparison to the article, the airline industry used to be the playground of the rich and famous. Now just about any western person can ride a plane if they want to.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Mal-2 ( 675116 )

      For a while, but unlike $500,000-a-dose cancer medication, you won't die from not going to the space hotel. The early adopters always subsidize the infrastructure.

    • >"As always, only rich fucks will have access to it."

      Because the poor will pay to make it happen?? Or do you feel somehow that you or they are entitled to go?

      https://taxfoundation.org/60-p... [taxfoundation.org]

      https://www.pewresearch.org/fa... [pewresearch.org]

  • 35k plus airfare? (Score:3)

    by bobm ( 53783 ) on Sunday February 09, 2020 @10:15PM (#59709306)

    I wonder if the 35k/night includes round trip airfare? Also I wonder how much training you would have before the flight.

    If I had CEO amounts of money I would sign up, sadly I'm more in the Motel 6 price range.

    (for those outside the hospitality world, Motel 6 charged 6 dollars/night and was a decent rate back in the day. They kept the price low by having things like a TV in the room where you had to insert quarters to watch tv).

  • I would prefer governments to use tax dollars to fund space exploration, but our current government is incapable of pursuing a coherent vision for more than 4 years. If NASA needs to get into the tourism business to fund more space exploration, so be it.

    NASA is still the largest game in town for space exploration, but if our society pulls inwards much further, we could lose the initiative to the billionaires. If technology moves forward enough while our governments lose enough vision, we might reach a
  • The Axiom, providing everything you need to be happy. Coming soon to you in the year 2020. https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]
  • Exclusive hotel attached to the ISS needs highly motivated people willing to put up with cosmic rays and other hazards of interstellar space. Must also be willing and able to learn cleaning in micro-gravity environments. Temporary position only, as guests will be not required to do anything up there. Pay will be subject to negotiation before launch and insurance is the employee's sole responsibility.
  • NASA has only 4 stars. Hope it does better.
  • At best you will have a tiny niche if rich weirdos who actually like being in space. It's not like an amusement park or a cruise ship. There is no artificial gravity or comfort. You get to experience zero G and look at Earth and then all the discomfort will add up quick.
  • NASA was not very thrilled when Russia had space tourists fly to Mir and the Russian sections of the ISS.

    Looks like NASA changed its tune.

  • Shanks, Shuckworth and Showler (Score:3)

    by coofercat ( 719737 ) on Monday February 10, 2020 @08:06AM (#59710316) Homepage Journal

    I hope this new hotel will have a gravity machine and wall-to-wall carpets. How else with the Vermicious Knids find their way on ready to eat the hotel workers when they arrive on the transport capsule?

    Lucky for Nasa that the plucky Brit, Willy Wonka will come and save them :-)

  • intercontinental breakfast?
  • The Zurich-Orbital Geheimschaft Bank is finally on track.

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