Space Tourism: Research Recommendations for the Future of the Industry and Perspectives of Potential Participants

Tourism Management xxx (2012) 1e10

Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect

Tourism Management

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/tourman

Space tourism: Research recommendations for the future of the industry and perspectives of potential participants

Maharaj Vijay Reddy*, Mirela Nica, Keith Wilkes

Bournemouth University, UK article info abstract

Article history: This paper has two objectives. Firstly, it proposes a set of research dimensions for the further investigation Received 18 August 2010 of the emerging space tourism industry and secondly, it examines the perceptions of potential space travel Accepted 30 November 2011 participants on key factors that influence their motivation, behaviour and decision-making. The research methodology adopted in this study involved collecting quantitative data from British residents in Southern Keywords: England to explore and understand their perceptions of space tourism. In addition, qualitative data was Space tourism gathered by interviewing key informants connected to the space tourism industry including Virgin Research recommendations Galactic, Airbus and EADS Astrium to understand their views on people’s motivations, perceptions and the Southern England Motivation and demand future of the industry. Data analysis shows that intentional need for adventure and exploration is the motivational force in space tourism. Willingness to undertake space travel is also influenced by the perception to risk, which plays a central role in potential tourist behaviour. Furthermore, factors such as type of space travel (orbital/sub-orbital),type of launch and design of the spacecraft, location of spaceports, training required, duration, insurance, health and reputation of the operating company also seem to have some influence on tourist decision-making. The paper contends that while global research dimensions are necessary it is also important to understand perceptions on a country-specific and regional basis. Crown Copyright Ó 2011 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction academic debates yet to come in this area as only a few full papers have been published, in research journals (e.g.: Cater, 2010; Collins Space tourism is no longer a myth but significant research et al., 1994; Crouch, Devinney, Louviere, & Islam, 2009; Olds, questions remain unexplored. Several magazines have been McCormick, Charania, & Marcus, 2005; Peeters, 2010), and in publishing brief articles on such advancements (e.g.: Technology books (e.g.: Duval, 2005; Laing & Chouch, 2004; Lappas, 2006). Review, The Engineer, The Guardian, and The Daily Telegraph). In This paper aims to propose a set of research dimensions for the relation to tourism, Crouch (2001) gave early indications of the further investigation of this under-researched topic; and to examine industry and research notes have outlined the potential of space the perceptions and motivations of potential space travel participants tourism market advances in a few countries. For example, moti- in Southern England. Structured interviews with five ‘influential’ key vational perceptions and early developments in the space tourism informants in the space tourism industry (e.g.: Virgin Galactic, EADS industry in Japan were addressed by Collins, Iwasaki, Kanayama, Astrium) and a quantitative questionnaire survey (n ¼ 164) were and Ohnuki (1994); in Canada and the United States by Collins, carried out to explore the perception and attitudes among a sample of Stockmans, and Maita (1995); and in Australia by Laing and the British population. First, the key research focus is debated within Chouch (2004). Though these studies have provided some useful the section on the current status of the space tourism industry. early thoughts most of them are now outdated; for instance, the Secondly, the research methodology and finally the findings of the indications on the UK space tourism market by Barrett (1999). study analysing the motivational factors, risk perceptions of the However, the space tourism industry, which is experiencing many potential market in Southern England are presented. technological and legal advances, is considered to have enormous potential in the UK (and elsewhere) and it has become imperative 2. Current status of the space tourism industry to better understand potential space tourists’ motivations, demand and price on a regional and country-specific basis. There are serious 2.1. The business of space tourism industry

* Corresponding author. School of Tourism, Bournemouth University, BH12 5BB, UK. Tel.: þ44 1202 961520; fax: þ44 1202 515707. The commercial space market has existed since 1970. The world E-mail address: [email protected] (M.V. Reddy). market for satellite-based services, which includes television,

Please cite this article in press as: Reddy, M. V., et al., Space tourism: Research recommendations for the future of the industry and perspectives of potential participants, Tourism Management (2012), doi:10.1016/j.tourman.2011.11.026 2 M.V. Reddy et al. / Tourism Management xxx (2012) 1e10 telecommunications, global positioning systems, and earth obser- now realised, authors such as Collins (2003) argue that govern- vation missions (weather, environmental, and search and rescue) ments have a duty to contribute to the funding of such techno- increases every year (Lappas, 2006; National Space Society-NSS, logical developments. 2009). Over the last ten years, the gross domestic product (GDP) The London Royal Aeronautical Society Conference (RAS, 2009) has increased 16% per year for the world’s commercial space related revealed that there is a more favourable situation in the United activities, with the market reaching more than $250 billion yearly States as a result of the government’s green signal for the launch of (Shkolyar, 2009). The space tourism industry has enormous tourism-related spacecraft from New Mexico. European perspec- potential and seems to be a great economic driver with the tives are much influenced by the decision of the European Space potential to reduce the cost of space access and attract other players Agency (ESA), which is not to allow the launch of tourism-related to the space market. According to the National Aerospace Labora- spacecraft given the sensitivities involved (ESA, 2008). However, tory (Japan), the demand for space tourism “apparently has the a study conducted in all 27 EU Member States (Eurobarometer, potential to grow to many times the most optimistic projections for 2009) revealed that 26% of respondents believe that the EU existing commercial space activities” (Collins, 2003:5). Spacesport should do more regarding space exploration while 38% thought Scotland (2009) states that the space tourism industry is ex- that it should perhaps put more emphasis on this sector; more than pected to grow by 18e26% per year during 2020e2030. 60% believed that the EU should increase or maintain the level of Russia first gave the opportunity for a space tourist on its Soyuz budgetary resources allocated to space activities; with 43% sup- (Futron, 2002) and created the beginning of orbital space tourism. porting the budget remaining unchanged; and 20% wanting the Today, only the Russian Soyuz and Chinese Shenzhou spacecrafts are budget to be increased. These findings indicate the need for more regarded as suitable for human travel though several private attention to space-related activities in Europe. companies are involved in the manufacture of commercial space- Such scepticism also prevailed in the USA. NASA initially treated crafts. The growth of the space tourism market is expected to follow the idea of space tourism with some disdain viewing, civilian space aclassic‘S-curve’ similar to products that offer a new capability; for flights a waste of valuable time and research with obvious safety example, air travel, mobile phones and personal computers (Ashford, hazards (Collins, 2003; Swarbrooke et al., 2003). However, recently 2007). Spencer (2004) envisages four phases of space tourism they reviewed their policy on space tourism and recognised the development from 2001 to 2040 and beyond. A pioneering phase, huge potential associated with the development of safe and rela- which started with Dennis Tito’s first flight in 2001, is followed by an tively inexpensive space transportation. Griffin (2008), the exclusive phase. In these two phases the market is limited to wealthy Administrator of NASA states that ‘a successful space tourism and adventurous people, willing to pay large amounts for this industry would offer many synergistic opportunities for private-public exclusive adventure. There follows a rapid growth phase (the mature partnerships’ and would generate new revenues for space agencies. phase) when the costs are reduced by the maturing technology, Futron (2006) estimated that the sub-orbital space tourism busi- economy of scale, and competition. Finally, there is a saturation ness could generate 10,000 passengers by the year 2021 with phase (mass market phase) when the growth is driven by economic revenues of more than $650 million. Swarbrooke et al. (2003:330) expansion and new markets (young people) (Ashford, 2007; stated that ‘the potential for big business is there - the race is on to Spencer, 2004). At present, Virgin Galactic, Space Adventure, XCOR realise that potential’. Companies such as Virgin Galactic and XCOR and Rocketplane-Kisler are some of the companies developing sub- Aerospace are already into this race. In future, minor differences in orbital tourist vehicles (Excell, 2009; Globus, 2008). The first sub- vehicle design, time duration in space might bring major compet- orbital passenger flight is expected to travel in 2012. On the 4th itive advantages for some of these companies. As Goehlich (2007) May 2011, SpaceShipTwo developed by Virgin Galactic, demon- stated, space tourism flights have the potential to change the strated its unique re-entry ‘feather’ configuration for the first time. balance in human space flight from the traditional higher public Though this was a test flight and the third in less than two weeks, it funding to private expenditures in the long-term. However, the marks another major milestone on the path to powered test flights realities of the industry exhibit that current launch capabilities are and commercial operations (Virgin Galactic, 2011). Virgin Galactic inadequate for space settlement as anticipated by some authors advertised a price of $200,000 per seat in its SpaceShipTwo for (e.g.: Lappas, 2006). a two-hour space experience (Ker Than, 2009; Telegraph, 2009). Therefore, the main problem for the commercial space tourism Though there are differences between the costs of these trips industry is its limited ability to attract the private investment advertised by companies and the space activities listed on the itin- needed to lower the cost of access to space as well as to mobilise erary for that price, there is a widespread agreement that the costs public and private sector support to increase the capacity to need to be lowered. The NSS (2009) stated that this industry has the accommodate commercial passengers in the space. George Neild, potential capability of sustaining thousands of flights per year, if the the Associate Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration cost is maintained at the $100,000 level or less. (FAA), Department of the US Government commented that ‘the next The early years of the aviation industry offers many lessons to 2-3 years will be a critical time period for the U.S space program. the newly emerging and as yet expensive space tourism industry. During this period, we are likely to see the retirement of the space The quest for lower costs and improved performance driven by shuttles, demonstration of commercial cargo deliveries to the competition led to today’s global aviation industry (Collins et al., International Space Station and the start of commercial human 1994). Whilst providing parallelism with commercial flights, space flight operations’ (Neild, 2009). For instance, Atlantis carrying Peeters (2010:1625) discussed the ‘potential evolution of commercial 3.5 tonnes of supplies to ISS made its final lift-off on 8 July 2011. personal spaceflights’ as well as indicating the assumptions that Upon its return, the 30-year space shuttle programme will come to ‘point-to-point (P2P) commercial space transport will become the long a close, with Atlantis and the other two shuttles retired to museums term sustainable market’. Taking into account the current potential (BBC, 2011). The retirement of the Space Shuttle has considerably space tourism demand, International Space University (ISU) reduced the chances for a space tourist to obtain the third seat suggests that a ticket price of around $50,000 should be sufficient aboard Russian Soyuz spacecraft. Therefore, until the above goals for a viable space tourism industry but this will depend heavily on are met by government departments supporting commercial technological developments in the propulsion system and vehicle flights, space travel will have to be short trips affordable only by the design, low maintenance and operational costs (Swarbrooke, Beard, wealthy. Researchers at the US Space Systems Design Laboratory Leckie, & Pomfret, 2003). Though the need for private investment is investigated the driving economic factors of space tourism markets

Please cite this article in press as: Reddy, M. V., et al., Space tourism: Research recommendations for the future of the industry and perspectives of potential participants, Tourism Management (2012), doi:10.1016/j.tourman.2011.11.026 M.V. Reddy et al. / Tourism Management xxx (2012) 1e10 3 and launch vehicle characteristics that affect businesses entering 1. Notion of ‘space tourist’: needs more agreement as debated by the industry (Olds et al., 2005). FAA and ESA officials who would prefer using the term ‘space While the demographic characteristics of potential customers travel participant’ rather than ‘space tourist’ considering the such as nationality, education, gender, age and the level of risk- human risk factors and insurance issues involved. However, taking behaviour play a significant role in influencing their space there seems to be no discrepancies in defining what is space travel choices, the past studies reveal some commonalities and tourism and the ESA has defined space tourism as an activity differences (e.g.: Collins et al., 1994; Laing & Chouch, 2004). Futron that will ‘encompass the execution of sub-orbital flights by (2002) reported that space travel was perceived to be less risky privately-funded and/or privately-operated vehicles and the than activities such as mountain climbing and skydiving, and some associated technology development driven by the space tourism of the adventure tourism activities are more expensive than space market’ (ESA, 2008:19; Farand, 2009; RAS, 2009); travel. For instance, expeditions to the Himalayas, especially to Mt 2. Actual demand: the real future demand (Crouch et al., 2009; Olds Everest, cost a total of almost $1million including guides and et al., 2005) for space tourism needs to be determined. Some porters (Lappas, 2006:161) and trips to Antarctica and Amazon are companies preparing for space travel have conducted market also activities on which people are prepared to spend more. From research but this is not available for public use. In addition to past market research reports on the expensive adventure activities exploring the real demand and market share from developed it is also interesting to note that people are willing to pay a signif- countries, it would be interesting to investigate the potential icant amount of money to do something that no one (or) only a few market in the fast developing BRIC countries. For instance, the have done before such as space travel. number of people who made more than a million dollars in India The NSS (2009) argued that space tourism will attract potential grew by 14% at a rate faster than in USA or UK (UNWTO, 2006). As customers from two already existent markets: extreme sports from a result of successful Indian and Chinese space explorations these which people seek the excitement of experiencing a new sensation potential millionaire tourists tend to be aware of space tourism of high acceleration and zero gravity, and wealthy leisure travellers. opportunities. Areas to concentrate upon in terms of space However, space tourism is not only about enjoyment for rich tourism demand and market are the demand across geographic people, it is also seen as a major step towards a large space regions and in specific countries, price fluctuations, marketing settlement, a way to promote human expansion into space strategies already in place and the actual growth of the industry; (Hopkins, 2008). Whatever the future projections may be, early 3. Space tourism awareness: the common attitudes, interests and predictions indicate that space tourism would attract tourists who scientific knowledge level of the general public need to be are interested in doing something new and unusual from the investigated to analyse their opinions on the development of adventure tourism sphere as well as the established space-related space tourism activities. The attitudes of the general public interests such as viewing Earth from the space (rather than for would be useful to influence the funding decisions of the public scientific purposes). sector bodies and governments. For instance, the amount of queries received by the ESA from various groups starting from 2.2. Factors that influence space travel and directions for future 2006 urge them to review their views on the legislations in research place for commercial launches from Europe; 4. Motivational inquiry: motivational concepts and theories There are ongoing debates on the motivation of space tourists, (Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, pushepull factors, etc) have been safety needs and preferences, technological issues and training applied to explain tourist’s motivation in the past (Cohen, 1974, needs. Many topics need attention from tourism researchers as well 1979; Crompton, 1979; Dann, 1977, 1981; Uysal, 1998, pp. as air transport engineers. For instance, motivation theories have 79e94) but not as yet in relation to space tourism. To avoid been successfully applied to explain tourist motivations in general unproven assumptions that space tourism may be linked to and, to a lesser extent, adventure tourism. However, there is adventure tourism, in-depth research is needed to investigate a considerable need to clearly identify tourists’ motivation for space and establish the motivational hypotheses; travel. With the exception of seven people who have already trav- 5. Risk factor: risk is one of the significant variables in space trips elled into space as tourists to date, there is no track record of and there is a need to explore the role of the risk factor (to identify commercial space tourism that might reveal potential consumer resilient markets for space tourism) and its influence on tourists’ motivation, attitudes and behaviour (Crouch, 2001). Due to socio- decision making process. Neild (2009) stated that ‘over the last 20 demographic change, an active ageing population has emerged years, there have been 196 licensed launches, without any fatalities over the last few years. These so-called ‘new-tourists’ (Swarbrooke or property damage to the uninvolved public’. Therefore it also et al., 2003) are characterised by an increasing preference for becomes necessary to enhance people’s awareness on the types escaping from everyday routine and a strong need for self- of spacecraft, safety measures and training provided to reduce fulfilment and excitement. the reluctances of the public about safety aspects; As there is no specific typology of space tourists, a sensible 6. Liability and insurance issues: difficulties in getting travel correlation regarding motivation and tourist behaviour could be insurance as a result of the assumption that greater risk is made with adventure tourists which seek to have self-directed, involved in space trips demands more information from the social, emotional, spiritual and intellectual needs that motivate banking and insurance sector as well as assurances from the them to engage in an adventure experience (Radder, 2005). Other private companies. Debates from the Aeronautical Society assumptions that need some statistical backing are the actual Conference (RAS, 2009) confirm that the New Mexico author- affordability of the potential space tourists as most studies on space ities, the FAA and the US Government will not be responsible tourism do not consider the affordability of the samples selected for for insurance issues arising from technical failures or accidents. surveys whereas ‘per capita’ income is seen as the most important Experts stress the point that the liability aspect is not fully determinant of tourism demand (Martin and Witt, 1994 cited in covered as well as there are uncertainties about role of regu- Barrett, 1999). Based on a thorough analysis of reports and view- latory organisations, such as, the FAA. Wells (2009) raised points of experts actively involved in space tourism, the authors of serious questions as ‘there is no doubt that accidents will occur this paper propose ten research topics, which merit further inves- and there is uncertainty today as to which rules govern liability in tigation if we are to better understand the space tourism industry: Space Tourism activities’? Does (the) Air Law (Warsaw/Montreal

Conventions) or (the) Outer Space Law (OS treaties) apply?’ Wells England on their motivations to travel to space and the key factors also commented that ‘insurance markets are preparing to influencing their decision-making process as well as the viewpoints address the needs of space tourism operators e the earlier they are of key informants actively connected to the global space tourism briefed the better’ (Wells, 2009); industry. 7. Health and training aspects: the implications of health aspects, psychological issues, sufficient training and training time frame 3. Research methods, data collection and analysis (the willingness of space tourists to spend longer time in training) need to be explored. In reality more information on This study used both qualitative interviews with key industry these aspects can be collected only when the industry picks up informants and a quantitative questionnaire for residents. Although in a year or two. At present, ‘the Civil Aerospace Medical Institute semi-structured interviews offer more flexibility in obtaining has issued Guidance for Medical Screening of Commercial Aero- unrestricted viewpoints, for this study the researchers considered space Passengers’ (Neild, 2009) to advise launch operators on that a more efficient way to gather data was necessary and this issue; selected structured interviews as the preferred research tool. 8. Impacts of the EU legislature restrictions: the wider implications Interviews with industry experts were undertaken to determine of the ESA legislature restrictions, ongoing operation related the supply side perspective of the potential space tourism market. regulations of the ESA, their impact on European public atti- It combines the flexibility of in-depth interviews with the tudes towards space industry and the future of possibilities of comparability of key questions (Finn, Elliott-Whire, & Walton, commercial launches from the EU need to be researched. 2000). The expert interview is a particular form of applying Farand (2009) and ESA (2008:24) stated the intention to structured or semi-structured interviews (Meuser and Nagel, 2002 recognise this activity initially ‘by helping provide the necessary cited in Flick, 2009) with a focus on a person’s capacity as an environment for this industry to flourish, for example by assisting expert in a certain area of activity and less interest in them as an in the setting up of legal frameworks for operation across Europe, individual. The question arises of who should be seen as an expert, involving civil aviation authorities and other relevant bodies in especially in a new field like space tourism. Deeke (1995 cited in debate’. However, ESA permits to start commercial operations Flick, 2009) stated that deciding who the experts are depends on from European bases may take a while though several Euro- the issue of the research and the theoretical and analytical pean companies are already actively involved in this industry; approaches applied. Consequently, experts are those persons ‘who 9. Socio-economic benefits: Collins and Autino (2010) reviewed are particularly competent as authorities on a certain matter of facts’ possible economic growth, employment, cultural influences (Flick, 2009:165) and have ‘technical process oriented and inter- and the possibilities of preserving peace in the world through pretive knowledge referring to their specific professional sphere of the creation of the new space travel industry, some of which activity’ (Bogner and Menz, 2002 cited in Flick, 2009, p.166). require detailed examination. There are wider benefits to Moreover, the key informant interview suggested by Jankowicz Europe and particularly to the Swedish spaceport locations (2005) refers to respondents who are chosen on the basis of adjacent to Kiruna as the possibilities are bright for new hotel their idiosyncratic, specialised knowledge and not randomly. facilities, roads and travel centres (Abrahamsson, 2009). There Limited budget issues made it impossible to achieve face-to-face seems to be multiple streams of revenue and first-mover interaction between the interviewer and interviewees located in advantage as commented by the President of the Virgin different parts of the UK, France and the USA; therefore, structured Galactic (Whitehorn, 2009). Spacesport Scotland (2009) stated interviews through emails were carried out based on purposive the potential benefits that Lossiemouth and adjacent areas in selection with key informants. Though the advantage offered by Scotland might receive. The Telegraph (2009) reported that email interview alleviated some time pressure of the interviewees, bringing Virgin Galactic from New Mexico to Britain ‘could dealing with a new topic caused considerable difficulties in create up to 2000 jobs’ and it would also ‘spur greater interest in obtaining responses. Interviews by five key informants from the fast-growing space industry. Virgin wants the government to different businesses linked to the space tourism industry were amend the 1986 Outer Space Act to allow it to launch space flights selected for interpretation: the Assistant Vice President of here. The legislation makes it difficult to run such a service in a leading bank in UK/Europe; a Manager and Aerospace Engineer Britain’. ESA has slowly started considering the growing socio- from Airbus; Director of a leading Spaceport Consultancy; senior economic importance of this industry in Europe; managers from the space flight companies Virgin Galactic and 10. Carbon footprint of space tourism: though several authors have EADS Astrium. sought to calculate the carbon footprint of air transport (e.g.: The quantitative questionnaire survey was used to explore Peeters, Williams, & Gossling, 2007), some early indications are information on the attitudes and perceptions regarding space needed in relation to the possible carbon footprint of space tourism among the British residents (n ¼ 164) in Southampton, tourism activity. Laporte-Weywada (2009) argued that there Bournemouth and Poole areas in South, and South West England. are plans to use Methane or Oxygen for commercial spacecraft The survey instrument was designed to gather both open-ended and there will be less NOx and CO2 emissions. However, there qualitative and closed-ended quantitative data to better under- are concerns that space tourism activity might increase tour- stand the motivation and potential behaviour of potential space ism’s total share of emissions to global warming. Collaborative tourists. Analysis of both methods offered the possibility of research between astronauts, aircraft engineers and climatol- checking qualitative opinions (structured interviews) against ogists may be necessary to investigate this. The Head of the quantitative results and to also establish if they correlate (Flick, Launchers and Exploration Legal Matters Office at the ESA 2009). The questionnaire design process also involved a thorough stated that the studies funded by the ESA to evaluate the review of past studies (e.g.: Barrett, 1999; Crouch et al., 2009; credibility of emerging private ventures as well as to evaluate Futron, 2002; Webber, 2009) as well as ongoing debates (e.g.: the carbon footprint of the activity might shed some light on RAS, 2009) and appropriate variables were selected for the pilot these aspects (Farand, 2009). survey. Non-probability convenience sampling strategy was chosen for gathering the final quantitative data due to the limited In an attempt to address some of these research gaps, this paper resources and time. One of the authors actively took part in the explores public opinion of residents of three cities in Southern fieldwork and waited for its return but allowing the participant to

Please cite this article in press as: Reddy, M. V., et al., Space tourism: Research recommendations for the future of the industry and perspectives of potential participants, Tourism Management (2012), doi:10.1016/j.tourman.2011.11.026 M.V. Reddy et al. / Tourism Management xxx (2012) 1e10 5 complete at their own pace. 164 fully-completed questionnaires could afford it, which is not surprising. On the other hand, more were gathered during 10 February 2010 and 12 March 2010. than a quarter (26%) of the respondents claimed that they are The qualitative interview quotes taken from the structured unlikely to participate in a space fight experience even though the interviews were used thematically to strengthen the quantitative cost would not be an issue. findings. In order to preserve their anonymity only the sectors Among those who claimed they are unlikely or not interested in represented by the key informants are mentioned. The key infor- undertaking space travel, three quarters (74%) were women (Fig. 1). mant interview data was quantified using coding, which refers to Fig. 1 also gives the breakdown of different opinions of the the process of organising the data into “chunks” by taking text data, respondents based on their age groups. It seems that women are segmenting sentences or paragraphs into categories or themes and less interested in space trips because they are more concerned then labelling them with a term (Creswell, 2003). The codes were about safety and consider space travel is “too risky”. then categorised before patterns were identified. The data from Table 1 shows that “risk” is their primary reason for not being quantitative questionnaires were analysed using SPSS and Excel, willing to travel into space, and represents 34% of total responses. The outcomes of each analysis were then compared to determine Perceived risk seems to act as a hurdle for some people in the similarities and differences. However, only findings related to decision-making process whilst for others it is something attrac- tourist motivational factors and decision-making process are pretive, something that they are actively searching for (Dickson & sented in this paper. Dolnicar, 2004). As a result, in space tourism, the concept of risk is central to tourism behaviour. Uncertain buying goals or purchase 4. Key findings rewards; predictions of positive or negative consequences or financial considerations (Moutinho, 1980) are sources of perceived The survey results reflect the attitudes and perceptions of risk, which could also influence the potential space tourism a sample of respondents from Southern England towards space demand. Around 33% of the respondents consider that there are tourism. The results are outlined under headings, namely, space “enough destinations to see on Earth” and they are not interested in tourism awareness and interest, motivation, key factors influencing space. This reflects the fact that there are considerable numbers of customer decision to travel into space, perceived risk in space people for whom space holds no attraction at all. The third reason is travel, safety issues in space tourism, and demand in the UK. Of the related to “environmental concern” but it seems to be less impor- 164 respondents, 53% were male and 47% female. However, tant as only 9% of the respondents mentioned it. according to the UK Census 2001 (ONS, 2010), the population is Some of the respondent quotes (from the open-ended questions represented by 48.6% men and 51.4% women. Consequently, there is presented in the quantitative survey) show their unwillingness to a variance of 4.4% compared to the overall gender ratio but it is undertake space travel: “I am concerned about the environmental unlikely to have a significant impact on the survey results. The impact” (female respondent, aged 25e34); “Apart from the view I sample had a moderate group age representation related to both don’t see what other value could be added to the experience” (male male and female groups, with most respondents (30%) aged respondent, aged 35e50); “I have no interest in going to space.” between 35 and 50, a further 26% were under 25 years, those (Male respondent, aged 35e50); “Plenty to see here on Earth.” between 25 and 34 were 23%, between 51 and 65 were 17%, and (Female respondent, aged above 65); “Not keen on flying, too risky.” over 65’s were 4%. (Male respondent, aged 25e34); “I think it would be generally boring with occasional excitement” (Female respondent, aged 51e65); “It 4.1. Awareness, interest and reasons for not undertaking space doesn’t appeal to me as a major step for human race.” (Male travel respondent, aged 35e50). Given that it is also possible that lack of knowledge about space In terms of awareness, 51% of respondents mentioned that they tourism makes some respondents declare that they are not inter- are aware of the idea of space tourism but only 22% of respondents ested in space tourism. Provision of information and a targeted consider space tourism experience as important or very important. market campaign might change their opinion in future. 39% of the respondents prefer to adopt a neutral position. The survey proposed a hypothetical situation in which the respondents 4.2. Space tourism motivation were able to pay the cost of the trip and, thus, the affordability variable was excluded as carried out in past studies. Fig. 1 attempts For a clear representation the 5-point Likert scale used in the to identify and present their willingness to travel into space. survey was reduced to a scale of 1 to 3 (very important; important and Combining the “likely” responses with the “very likely” responses less important) by combining the “most important” with “very resulted, a total of 54% of respondents were willing to participate in important”,and“less important” with “the least important”.The space travel, confirming an interest in space tourism among the results are illustrated in Fig. 2, which shows the overall respondent British people and a willingness to undertake space travel if they rating for the motivational variables. Over 66% of survey respondents

Fig. 1. Willingness to undertake space travel vs. Respondent gender and age.

Table 1 (Going to Space, seeing earth from space), (and) of new sensations Unwillingness to undertake space travel vs. gender. (weightlessness)”. Therefore, there are two aspects related to space Gender If you are not that interested in a space trip, what is the reason? tourism motivation were reﬂected. Firstly, there is the motivation to

Too Health Enough Environmental Other Total do something that only a few have done before and, thus, to be the risky problems destinations to concern first private astronauts (the pioneering aspect) and, secondly, the see on earth experience of space flight, which includes the view of Earth from Female 30.00% 2.90% 17.10% 5.70% 10.00% 65.70% space, weightlessness and the excitement of high speed sensations. Male 4.30% 4.30% 15.70% 2.90% 7.10% 34.30% Table 2 shows the mean values for the motivational variables. It is Total 34.30% 7.10% 32.90% 8.60% 17.10% 100.00% evident that “vision of Earth from space” is the most important reason with a mean of 2.08, followed by “unusual experience” (mean 2.72) and “weightlessness” (mean 2.74). “High speed expe- rated ‘vision of Earth from space’ as the very important reason for rience” is rated as the fourth reason (mean 3.37) and the least undertaking space trip. This result is supported by previous studies important is “scientific contribution” (mean 3.92). that claimed that the most important motivation for people to go to For the interviewees space travel represents an exceptional space is the fascinating view of Earth from space. Futron (2002) adventure, “a thrilling once in a lifetime experience”, according to the revealed that 63% of the US respondents declared viewing Earth key informant from the banking sector (the Assistant Vice President from space was the biggest attraction for sub-orbital space tourism. A of a leading bank in UK/Europe). It was also suggested that space decade before Barrett (1999) confirmed that viewing earth and tourism will improve environmental awareness and understanding looking deeper into space represent the key motivations for UK of Earth and the Universe. This was mentioned by three key residents to take the trip. informants: “there is a potential for more awareness of the environ- Many astronauts have declared that viewing Earth from space as ment and humanity” (respondent from Airbus); “better perception of the most magnificent experience they ever had (Spencer, 2004). Earth’s fragility, better awareness of environmental problems” Personal communication of one the authors with Richard Garriott, (respondent from EADS Astrium); or “enhancement in faith, the second-generation space traveller as well as the only person compassion and environmental concern” (interviewee from the travelled to space on both the American Space Shuttle, and Russian banking sector). This aspect is also pointed out by one of the Soyuz, also confirmed the value of the experience of viewing the previous seven space tourists’, who mentioned that: “You’re out earth from space. ‘People enjoy the emotional appeal of the limitless there in space looking back at your life, yourself, your accomplish- space frontier’ a key informant from the aerospace industry also ments. Thinking about everything you own, love or care for, and pointed out. Thus, people’s need for exploration and the thought of everything else that happens around the world. Thinking (the) bigger imagery represent the most important motives for space tourism, picture. Thinking in a more global fashion” (Ansari, 2009 cited in which is the push factor, the so-called Ulysses factor (Anderson, Fisher, 2009:69). However, all these viewpoints do not actually 1970 cited in Mayo & Jarvis, 1981). The next very important reason reflect the long-term goal of possible human settlement in space to for going to space is the weightlessness or experiencing zero which many astronauts and policy makers at space agencies aspire. gravity, which received 44% of the responses, followed by the unusual nature of the experience (43%). These two reasons seem to 4.3. Key factors influencing space travel decision-making meet the need for a challenging and fun experience, which represents the attractiveness of any adventure travel that entices tourists Two factors influencing people’s motivation to undertake space (Hall, 1992 cited in Fluker, 2005). The high speed experience is travel are the socio-psychological motives to travel to space (push preferred by only 26% of the respondents perhaps related to safety factors) and specific attributes or characteristics of the product ‘ fi ’ concerns. Scienti c contribution does not play an important role (pull factors). Specific attributes of the space tourism product also in respondent motivations to undertake space travel. seem to have considerable influence on a customer’s decision to An investigation of what key informants in the space tourism undertake space travel. The factors that seem to affect people’s industry consider to be the reasons for space travel revealed that decision-making process, as stated by key informants include, a) the most important reasons for space tourism stated by quantita- type of experience (orbital vs. sub-orbital space travel); b) health tive survey respondents correlates with their answers. The key and training requirements; c) safety issues; d) type of launch and “ informant from EADS Astrium mentioned: for some at the begin- design of the spacecraft (e.g.: number of window seats); e) number ning: pride, demonstration of courage or of ability to perform leading of passengers onboard; f) reputation of the operating company; g) edge activities. For most (others), it is (the) discovery of new areas location of spaceports; f) reliability statistics; and h) environmental credentials. Survey results demonstrate, the most important aspect in the decision-making process is related to risk as about 27% of respondents claimed that safety is the key factor that will mainly influence their decision to travel into space (Fig. 3). The training required is the next important aspect as around 20% of respondents refer to

Table 2 Descriptive statistics: Motivational factors for space tourism.

Motivational variables N Mean Std. deviation Vision of earth from space 156 2.08 1.26 Weightlessness 156 2.74 1.17 High speed experience 156 3.37 1.26 Unusual experience 156 2.72 1.268 Scientiﬁc contribution 156 3.92 1.4 Valid N (listwise) 156 Fig. 2. Reasons for space travel.

Fig. 5. Participation in risky activities. Fig. 3. Key factors which influence tourists’ decisions to undertake space travel. snowboarding. In addition, skydiving, mountain climbing and this. When asked about the maximum period of time they would be bungee jumping were extreme sports considered to have a higher willing to take part in training, 47% of respondents mentioned as level of risk, and received 13%, 16% and 9% of responses respectively. two weeks to one month (Fig. 4), which is similar to the training These variables were selected to allow comparison with the results scheme planned by some operators. One of the Administrators of of similar studies conducted in other countries (e.g.: Fluker, 2005; the FAA commented that “an operator must train each space flight Futron, 2002; Webber, 2009). participant before the flight on how to respond to emergency situa- In addition to Fig. 5, a cross tabulation was carried out between fl tions, including, smoke, fire, loss of cabin pressure, and emergency their participation in risky activities and key factors in uencing ’ egress” (Neild, 2009). This also indicates that appropriate training tourists decisions to undertake space travel, which revealed that ’ lessons and rehearsals for a passenger who has never been to space people s risk-taking behaviour has a direct impact on their appre- would require two to four weeks. However, operators such as Virgin ciation of different factors related to space travel. For instance, Galactic require only 3 days of pre-flight preparation for sub-orbital many bungee jumping participants considered the training travel which raises questions about the viability of the training and required as the key factor in their decision to travel to space while ’ fl their effectiveness in a likely event of an accident in space. The a company s reputation seemed to in uence most of the sailors and length of training may vary between operators and will depend on mountain climbing participants. Insurance costs and accommoda- the specific needs of their vehicle, mission architecture and on legal tion facilities in space are the least important factors, especially for regulations (Seedhouse, 2008). sailing/boating participants. However, it is evident that for many Training programmes are an integral part of the space tourism extreme sports participants the safety aspect plays the most experience aimed to prepare the tourist for the space flight but also important role in their decision to undertake space travel. playing a significant role in people’s decision to undertake space Risk is considered to be a multidimensional phenomenon with fl travel. The training programmes are already in place for orbital in uence on individual perception (Fluker, 2005; Webber, 2009). space travel, for instance, the Russian training programme (Fisher, Factors such as the level of voluntary choice to accept or reject the 2009; Swarbrooke et al., 2003). For sub-orbital flights, training risk or level of familiarity that people may have with the activity programmes are still in the developmental stage, as the inter- also impact upon their perception of risk. Futron (2002) asked fi fi viewee from Airbus stated, “They will, however, evolve to include not respondents to rate ve activities in the order of risk signi cance to ’ just the minimum necessary training and fun, but other activities”. explore US respondents perception of risk. In this study half of Other factors such as a company’s reputation and duration of space respondents rated space travel as the most risky activity (Fig. 6). travel experience are also important for 12% and 11% of the British Although for some of the respondents the risk involved in space respondents respectively (Fig. 3). It is apparent that people are travel does not seem to be an impediment at all and they would like fl aware of the fact that companies like Virgin Galactic cannot afford to travel as soon as space ights are available and thus, they might fl to damage their name by having a significant failure, which would like the risks of ying on new spacecrafts that nobody has ever fl affect not only their space business but the entire space tourism own on before (9%). Risk-taking and danger are sought by many of industry. the respondents who would prefer to wait until space travel becomes safer. Some 15% of respondents would travel in less than 5 years after the first commercial space flight, 18% between 5 and 10 4.4. Perception of risk and participation in risky activities years after, and 43% consider that this is something that they will do sometime during their lifetime (Fig. 7). A vast majority of the respondents (Fig. 5) claimed that they had In responding to a question seeking to determine how enthu- participated in at least one extreme sport which shows similarity siastic the respondents were to become space tourists given that with research conducted by others (e.g.: Webber, 2009). The most risk that is inherent and that personal medical problems can be popular activity among 27% of the respondents was skiing and

Fig. 4. Availability to take part in training. Fig. 6. Respondent perception of the most risky leisure activity.

35.00%

30.49% 30.00%

25.00% 25.00%

20.00% 18.29% 18.29%

15.00% Percentage Fig. 7. Availability to go into space. 10.00% 7.93% a further hurdles to their participation, 29% (Fig. 8), and 30% (Fig. 9) 5.00% of the respondents claimed that they were not enthusiastic to participate in a space trip. 0.00% Compared to the earlier finding on ‘willingness to undertake not slightly neutral enthusiastic very enthusiastic enthusiastic enthusiastic space travel’ (see Fig. 1), there is some difference (almost 5%) in their likelihood of taking a space fight after realising the risk Fig. 9. Willingness to participate in space travel after suggesting possible medical involved, similar to Futron (2002). It seems that their behaviour is problems. impacted negatively to the perception of increased risk or safety concerns. Perception to risk is a very individual characteristic (Dickson & Dolnicar, 2004), individuals are very receptive to Concorde crash in Paris, as mentioned by the key informant from changes in risk perception and they tend to react easily to any the banking sector. Furthermore, another interviewee from Airbus suggestions related to the risk involved and/or medical problems noted: “The industry should be targeting safety levels similar to or (Figs. 8 and 9). A detailed survey in future with a list of potential better than parachuting (1 death per 60,000 jumps). Safety is depen- risks and the measures that are in place to reduce them might dent upon the vehicle and flight test program which will include change risk perceptions related to space travel and help potential hundreds of flights prior to commercial passenger service”. Never- space tourists to moderate the risk they perceive to be associated theless, risk plays a central role in space tourists’ behaviour as with space travel. reinstated by the key informants. At the beginning, “for some [.] risk adds to the excitement” (Virgin Galactic) whilst, for others, it “ 4.5. Safety issues in space tourism represents more of an impediment because of lack of insurance cover and/or dangerous experience” (Assistant Vice President of With regard to the significance of safety measures, all the key a leading UK/European bank). These reinstate that in the long-term industrial informants claimed that safety is extremely important the space tourism industry needs to provide an acceptable level of for the long-term development of the industry. However, space safety in order to be successful. travel is, by definition, a risky activity, as the key informant from Spaceport Associates mentioned: “Space is risky. There are no 4.6. Space tourism demand in the UK guarantees, and the US Government insists on space tourists signing an indemnification before they can fly. USG also insists that all tourists are Space tourism seems to attract individuals with high fully informed of the risks”. Besides the regrettable disasters of the adrenaline-driven appetites who accept taking risks to obtain their “Challenger” (1986) and “Columbia” (2003) space missions, they personal rewards. The interviewees indicated that “wealthy retired are a reminder that people can lose their life searching for the space entrepreneurs who partake in high adrenaline sports experiences” experience. The industry has to consider high safety levels to make (respondent from the banking sector) or the middle age “self- this activity safe enough to constantly attract people and prevent starters who have their own businesses and are very successful in their accidents which can bring the industry to a halt like the case of the own areas” (respondent from Virgin Galactic) are the type of people with the financial affordability to become private space explorers. These appreciations are supported by the survey results since the 35.00% majority of the British respondents considered that wealthy (54%) and/or adventurous people (12%) are the target market for space 29.27% 30.00% tourism industry in the UK. 25.61% It appears that certain personality traits like the genetic 25.00% predisposition to “novelty seeking” (Hamer and Copeland, 1998 cited in Dickson & Dolnicar, 2004)or“sensation seeking” (Zucker- 19.51% 20.00% man, 1994 cited in Hansen & Breivik, 2001), make the first space tourists push the barrier and enjoy space adventure. These “super 14.63% 15.00% heroes” ready to travel in “prototype like vehicles”, as noted by the Percentage 10.98% interviewee from EADS Astrium that will make the difference and 10.00% will stimulate the interest in space travel for many people to follow. Though there are launch related ESA restrictions (ESA, 2008; 5.00% Farand, 2009), given the considerable role of some of the British companies, such as, Virgin Galactic, ExcaliburAlmaz, Reaction 0.00% Engines, and Bristol Spaceplanes, the potential UK market for space not slightly neutral enthusiastic very travel has to be considered in forecasting future demand. As stated enthusiastic enthusiastic enthusiastic by the interviewee from Virgin Galactic, globally there are ‘currently Fig. 8. Willingness to participate in space travel after suggesting the risk involved. 650,000 individuals’ willing to experience sub-orbital flight with the

financial capacity to afford and that a considerable number of them decision-making process and for instance, the cruise industry uses are from Britain. intensive marketing campaigns focused on catching the attention On the other hand, as stipulated by the interviewees, there are of women to increase the demand (Spencer, 2004). It would be also also concerns in relation to the global space tourism industry, interesting to discover whether there is a significant difference which refers to possible over-regulation by government authorities between generations regarding perceptions, attitudes and will- or, on the contrary, the development of unsafe vehicles that will ingness to undertake space tourism; for example, Generation Y, slow down its growth. The concerns related to export controls due which is reaching adulthood vs. Generation X or Baby Boomers to sensitive technology or the development of a viable orbital (Benckendorff et al., 2010; Cooper, 2008). spacecraft were also reflected. Overall, the interviewees’ optimism The actual affordability is still considered the most important regarding the future of the space tourism industry is promising, aspect of space tourism demand. Therefore, efforts should be made showing that the industry is steadily progressing year after year. As in future to survey wealthy British residents living in UK’s richest Lappas (2006, p.164) stated, “space tourism is bound to expand in the postcodes who could actually afford the price of a space trip to near future. Although space hotels and mass media access are still reveal their perceptions and their actual willingness to undertake a dream, the first steps towards making space tourism a reality have space travel. Investigating specific aspects related to sub-orbital/ already been taken”. Such a viewpoint was confirmed by all the orbital space travel is necessary to reveal to what extent specific interviewees and Virgin Galactic has plans for operating hotels and product characteristics influence choice behaviour and implicit handling cargos in space through its forthcoming projects, namely, travel decisions. However, these will take few more years Virgin Galactic Science Services, Virgin Galactic Cargo, and Virgin depending upon the knowledge level of the respondents. Galactic World Travel (Whitehorn, 2009). Acknowledgements 5. Conclusion The authors would like to thank the anonymous reviewers and In an attempt to investigate some the ten research dimensions Dr Jonathan Edwards (BU) for their helpful comments. proposed earlier, this paper has demonstrated the current under- ’ standing of space tourists motivations and risk perceptions in the Appendix. Supplementary data UK. In summary, people’s need for unique, challenging and fun experiences drives the demand for space tourism. The reasons for Supplementary data related to this article can be found online at travel, accessibility of the destination, and the level of information doi:10.1016/j.tourman.2011.11.026. on them affect the relationship between motivations (push factors) and attributes of the destination (pull factors) (Uysal, 1998, pp. References 79e94) as the interaction between supply and demand is essential for the travel experience to take place. The reputation of the Abrahamsson, M. (2009). Spaceport Sweden: work in progress towards the operating company plays an important role in people’s decision to complete spaceport. In: Paper presented at the royal aeronautical society undertake space travel, as stated by 12% of survey participants. For conference on ‘Space Tourism: A New Industry in the Making’ (30 June), London. Ashford, D. (2007). New commercial opportunities in space. The Aeronautical Jour- instance, the use of the Virgin brand seems to act as a guarantee for nal, 111(1116), 61e75. http://www.spacefuture.com/archive/new_ a successful business. Space appears to be the next natural step in opportunities_in_commercial_space.shtml Accessed 12.10.09. satisfying people’s need for exploration, adventure and new Barrett, O. (1999). An evaluation of the potential demand for space tourism within the United Kingdom. Unpublished Report, Bournemouth University, Dorset, England. recreation activities. It can be said that the experience of viewing http://www.spacefuture.com/archive/an_evaluation_of_the_potential_ Earth and the blackness of space represents the most desirable demand_for_space_tourism_within_the_united_kingdom.shtml. Accessed element in people’s motivation to travel into space. This makes 12.10.09. fi space travel a unique and breathtaking experience; as Shuttle- BBC. (2011). Space shuttle Atlantis in historic nal lift-off. http://www.bbc.co.uk/ news/world-14077893 Accessed 11 July 2011. worth, one of the seven space tourists to date mentioned: “It’s very Benckendorff, P. J., Moscardo, G., & Prendergast, D. (Eds.). (2010). Tourism and stunning, very space, and very cool” (Fisher, 2009). generation Y. Wallingford: CABI Publishing. As discussed earlier, two aspects in particular have to be taken Cater, C. I. (2010). Steps to space: opportunities for astrotourism. Tourism Manage- ment, 31, 838e845. into consideration when explaining space tourism motivation. First, Cohen, E. (1974). Who is a tourist? A conceptual clarification. Sociological Review, 22, there is the pioneering aspect, which motivated the first private 527e555. space explorers to push the barrier and experience something that Cohen, E. (1979). A phenomenology of tourist experiences. Sociology, 13,179e201. fl Crompton, J. L. (1979). Motivations for pleasure vacation. Annals of Tourism Research, only astronauts have done before and, secondly, it is the space ight 6, 408e424. experience which attracts many people with all the excitement and Collins, P. (2003). Space tourism market demand and the transportation infra- uniqueness. Now the industry is making an effort to develop an structure. In: AIAA/ICAS symposium “The Next 100 Years” in honour of the Wright Brothers’ first flight, July 17, Dayton Ohio. http://www.spacefuture.com/archive/ orbital spacecraft which will surpass the one-passenger-at-a-time space_tourism_market_demand_and_the_transportation_infrastructure.shtml. offer of Soyuz spacecraft. Perhaps, the Space X Dragon has the best Accessed 15.10.09. chance to succeed but no sooner than 2016 (as commented by the Collins, P., & Autino, A. (2010). What the growth of a space tourism industry could contribute to employment, economic growth, environmental protection, interviewee from Spaceport Associates). Risk does represent the core education, culture and world peace. Acta Astronautica, 66, 1553e1562. part of the space travel participants’ concerns and is perhaps the Collins, P., Iwasaki, Y., Kanayama, H., & Ohnuki, M. (1994). Commercial implications most challenging issue faced by the global space tourism industry of market research on space tourism. Journal of Space Technology and Science, e though there are not many accidents in the recent past as stated by 10(2), 3 11. Collins, P., Stockmans, R., & Maita, M. (1995). Demand for space tourism in America the Associate Administrator of the FAA (Neild, 2009). and Japan, and its implications for future space activities. Sixth International Survey results indicate that many British residents are aware of Conference of Pacific-Basin Societies, Marina del Rey, California. Advances in the e the idea of space tourism, regard space tourism development as an Astronautical Sciences, 91,601 610. Cooper, C. (2008). The future of tourism. In C. Cooper, J. Fletcher, A. Fyall, D. Gilbert, important development but it is also essential that more campaigns & S. Wanhill (Eds.), Tourism principles and practice (4th ed.). Harlow: Pearson are needed to stimulate the interests of others. Willingness to Education Limited. undertake space travel differs based on the UK respondent’s Creswell, J. W. (2003). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods approaches (2nd ed.). London: Sage Publications Ltd. gender; women seem to have less interest. It has been established Crouch, G. I. (2001). The market for space tourism: early indications. Journal of that women play a significant role in the family and couple holiday Travel Research, 40(11), 213e219.

Crouch, G. I., Devinney, T. M., Louviere, J. J., & Islam, T. (2009). Modelling consumer Laing, J., & Chouch, G. I. (2004). Vacationing in space: tourism seeks “New Skies”.In choice behaviour in space tourism. Tourism Management, 30,441e454. T. V. Singh (Ed.), New horizons in tourism: Strange experiences and stranger Dann, G. M. S. (1977). Anomie, ego-enhancement and tourism. Annals of Tourism practices. Wallingford: CABI Publishing. Research, IV(4), 184e194. Lappas, V. (2006). Space tourism. In D. Buhalis, & C. Costa (Eds.), Tourism business Dann, G. M. S. (1981). Tourist motivation: an appraisal. Annals of Tourism Research, 8, frontiers. Consumers, products and industry. Oxford: Elsevier Butterworth- 187e219. Heinemann. Dickson, T., & Dolnicar, S. (2004). No risk, no fun: the role of perceived risk in adventure Laporte-Weywada, H. (2009). Astrium space tourism project. In: Paper presented at tourism. In: Proceedings of the 13th international research conference of the council of the royal aeronautical society conference on ‘Space Tourism: A New Industry in the Australian university tourism and hospitality education (CAUTHE 2004). http://ro. Making’ (30 June), London. uow.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article¼1256&context¼commpapers Accessed Mayo, E. J., & Jarvis, L. P. (1981). The psychology of leisure travel. Effective marketing 23.09.09. and selling of travel services. Boston: CBI Publishing Company. Duval, D. T. (2005). Space tourism. small steps, giant leaps: space as the destination Moutinho, L. (1980). Consumer behaviour in tourism. European Journal of Marketing, of the future. In M. Novelli (Ed.), Niche tourism. Oxford: Elsevier Butterworth- 21(10), 5e44. Heinemann. Neild, G. C. (2009) Space tourism: the government’s role. In: Paper presented at the Eurobarometer. (2009). Space activities of the European Union. Flash Eurobarometer royal aeronautical society conference on ‘Space Tourism: A New Industry in the Series 272. Survey conducted by the Gallup Organisation. http://ec.europa.eu/ Making’ (30 June), London. enterprise/newsroom/cf/itemlongdetail.cfm?item_id¼3749 Accessed 28.10.09.. National Space Society NSS. (2009). Space tourism: Opening the space economy. European Space Agency ESA. (2008). Space tourism: ESA’s view on private subor- National Space Society. Positional Paper on Space Tourism. http://www.nss.org/ bital spaceflights. ESA Bulletin, 135, Paris: ESA Institutional Matters and Strategic tourism/position.html Accessed 12.10.09. Studies Office. http://www.esa.int/esapub/bulletin/bulletin135/bul135c_galvez. Olds, J. R., McCormick, D., Charania, A., & Marcus, L. (2005). Space tourism: making pdf Accessed 10.08.2010. it work for fun and profit. Journal of British Interplanetary Society, 58,241e256. Excell, J. (2009). Space tourism. Open space. The Engineer Online, 13 July. http:// Office for National Statistics ONS. (2010). Census 2001 UK results [online]. UK: Office www.theengineer.co.uk/Articles/312243/Openþspace.htm Accessed 14.10.09. for National Statistics. http://www.statistics.gov.uk/census2001/pop2001/ Farand, A. (2009). ESA’s view on private suborbital spaceflights. In: Paper presented united_kingdom.asp Accessed 29.03.10. at the royal aeronautical society conference on ‘Space Tourism: A New Industry in Peeters, P., Williams, V., & Gossling, S. (2007). Air transport greenhouse gas emis- the Making (30 June), London. sions. In P. Peeters (Ed.), Tourism and climate change mitigation: Methods, Finn, M., Elliott-Whire, M., & Walton, M. (2000). Tourism & leisure research methods. greenhouse gas reductions and policies. Breda: NHTV Academic Series 6. Harlow: Longman. Peeters, W. (2010). From suborbital space tourism to commercial personal space- Fisher, A. (2009). Oral history. “Very stunning, very space, and very cool.” The flight. Acta Astronautica, 66, 1625e1632. launch of space tourism. Technology Review, January/February 2009 [online]. Radder, L. (2005). Motives of international trophy hunters. Annals of Tourism http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdf?vid¼8&hid¼102&sid¼5f9aa8f3-4e1e- Research, 32(4), 1141e1144. 4038-874a-ef5715ad7959%40sessionmgr11 Accessed 06.08.09. Royal Aeronautic Society RAS. (2009). Space tourism: a new industry in the making. Flick, U. (2009). An introduction to qualitative research (4th ed.). London: SAGE Royal aeronautic society conference, (30 June) London. Publications Ltd. Seedhouse, E. (2008). Tourist in space. A practical guide. Chichester: Praxis Fluker, M. (2005). Perceived risk in adventure tourism. Ph.D. thesis. Victoria Univer- Publishing Ltd. sity. http://eprints.vu.edu.au/1480 Accessed 04.08.09. Shkolyar, S. (2009). Reaching for the stars. Engineering & Technology76e79, 14 Futron. (2002). Space tourism market study orbital space travel & destinations with March e 03 April 2009. www.theiet.org/magazine Accessed 12.10.09.. suborbital space travel. Futron Corporation. http://www.futron.com/pdf/ Spacesport Scotland. (2009). ‘Lossiemouth, we have liftoff! Opportunities as resource_center/white_papers/SpaceTourismMarketStudy.pdf Accessed a consequence of the development of a spaceport. In: Paper presented at the 12.10.09. royal aeronautical society conference on ‘Space Tourism: A New Industry in the Futron. (2006). Suborbital space tourism demand revisited. Futron Corporation. Making’ (30 June), London. http://www.futron.com/pdf/resource_center/white_papers/ Spencer, J. (2004). Space tourism. Do you want to go? Burlington: Apogee Books SpaceTourismRevisited.pdf Accessed 21.10.09. Publication. Globus, A. (2008). Space tourism leads to space settlement. The National Space Swarbrooke, J., Beard, C., Leckie, S., & Pomfret, G. (2003). Adventure tourism. The new Society. http://www.nss.org/tourism/settlement.htm Accessed 12.10.09. frontier. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann. Goehlich, R. A. (2007). Long-term perspectives in the tourism industry. Space Telegraph. (2009). Virgin’s Scottish space dream. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/ tourism. In R. Conrady, & M. Buck (Eds.), Trends and issues in global tourism 2007. tol/business/industry_sectors/transport/article6888845.ece Accessed Berlin: Springer. 10.08.2010. Griffin, M. D. (2008). Risk and rewards in commercial space. National Aeronautics and Uysal, M. (1998). Part B: The demand side: The determinants of tourism demand. Space Administration (NASA) Lunar Lander Challenge Recognition Ceremony. 5, Economic geography of the tourist industry. December. http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/295733main_Risks-and-Rewards-in- Virgin Galactic. (2011). SpaceShipTwo’s first “Feathered” flight. http://www. Commercial-Space-5-Dec-08.pdf Accessed 13.10.09. virgingalactic.com/news/item/spaceshiptwos-first-feathered-flight/ Accessed Hansen, E. B., & Breivik, G. (2001). Sensation seeking as a predictor of positive and 28.06.2011. negative risk behaviour among adolescents. Personality and Individual Differ- Webber, D. (2009). Risking space in the next 50 years e perspectives for space ence, 30(4), 627e640. tourism. Spaceport Associates, [online]. http://www.spaceportassociates.com/ Hopkins, M. (2008). The space movement. Space settlement and space tourism: An ideo- pdf/ISDC2007.pdf Accessed 20.10.09. logical marriage. National Space Society. http://www.nss.org/spacemovement/ Wells, C. (2009). Space tourism: an insurance perspective. In: Paper presented at the tourism.html Accessed 12.10.09. royal aeronautical society conference on ‘Space Tourism: A New Industry in the Jankowicz, A. D. (2005). Business research projects (4th ed.). London: Thomson Making’ (30 June), London. Learning. Whitehorn, W. (2009). Space tourism: a new industry in the making. In: Paper Ker Than. (2009). Virgin galactic unveils first tourist spaceship. National Geographic presented at the royal aeronautical society conference on ‘Space Tourism: A New News, December, 8. [online]. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/ Industry in the Making’ (30 June), London. 12/091208-virgin-galactic-spaceship-enterprise-branson.html Accessed United Nations World Tourism Organisation UNWTO. (2006). India: The Asia and the 15.03.10. Pacific intra-regional outbound series. Madrid: World Tourism Organisation.