A Japanese startup has announced its plan to offer commercial balloon flights for space viewing, which aims to make the experience more affordable and accessible to the general public.
The company’s CEO, Keisuke Iwaya, emphasized that passengers can skip extensive training or language skills or be billionaires to participate in the experience.
The company, Iwaya Giken, based in Sapporo, has developed an airtight two-seat cabin and a balloon that can rise to an altitude of 25 kilometres, high enough to see the curvature of the Earth and outer space.
Although the balloon will not reach outer space, the passengers will have an unobstructed view of outer space from a higher altitude than a jet plane flies.
The company has partnered with Japanese travel agency JTB Corp. to collaborate on the project. Initially, the flight cost will be about 24 million yen ($180,000), but the company plans to reduce it to several million yen. Iwaya aims to democratize space and make it more accessible.
Unlike other modes of transportation for space viewing, the Iwaya Giken vessel will be lifted by helium that can be reused.
The first trip is planned for later this year and will take off from a balloon port in Hokkaido. The drum-shaped plastic cabin is 1.5 meters in diameter and has several large windows for viewing the space and the Earth below.
The company is currently accepting applications for the space viewing ride until the end of August. The first five passengers will be announced in October, and flights will be scheduled approximately a week apart, depending on the weather.
The project has been in development since 2012, and the company hopes that the balloon flights will bring a unique experience to space enthusiasts looking for a more accessible and affordable option than traditional space travel.
With its innovative approach, the company hopes to compete with other space tourism ventures that are currently being developed.
In recent years, several companies, including Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic, have been working on their space tourism projects, but these experiences can cost millions of dollars and require intensive training.
By contrast, Iwaya Giken’s space-viewing balloon flights could provide a more affordable and accessible option for space enthusiasts.
While the company focuses on making space more accessible, it is also committed to safety. The vessel will stay above Japanese territory or airspace and be lifted by helium that can be largely reused. The company has also developed an airtight two-seat cabin to ensure the safety of passengers.
The project is set to collaborate with Iwaya Giken and JTB Corp., one of Japan’s leading travel agencies, which is expected to help the project reach a wider audience. The companies plan to work together to market the balloon flights and provide an all-inclusive experience for passengers.
Overall, Iwaya Giken’s space-viewing balloon flights could revolutionize space tourism by making the experience more accessible and affordable. As the project moves forward, it will be interesting to see how it competes with other space tourism ventures and shapes the future of space travel.
