Civilian space travel may finally become a reality starting later in 2021. However, there are safety and government requirements to conquer first. After that, people can start traveling to the edge of space for the experience of a lifetime.

Space Shuttles took astronauts into space, launched satellites, and did experiments. They also fixed other spacecraft. The Space Shuttles helped build and maintain the International Space Station (ISS). The Space Shuttle program used six orbiters.

NASA said it would cost $35,000 a night for stays on the ISS, and the price to get there is estimated to be $50 million. Virgin Galactic has said it may in the short term raise the price of its tickets, which today cost $250,000. Despite the high costs, Virgin Galactic expects high demand from the wealthy.

When astronauts step out into space on a spacewalk, they can’t just pop back inside to quickly go to the bathroom. So they have to use maximum absorbency garments (MAGs), or adult-sized diapers.

To date, the longest continuous amount of time a human has spent in space is 437 days.

NASA’s Perseverance rover has become the latest to touch down safely on the red planet. The mission is expected to cost $2.7 billion, rising to $2.9 billion when inflation is factored in.

Nasa has selected the private company SpaceX to be part of its commercial spaceflight operations, but the firm is also pursuing its own space exploration agenda. To enable flights to the Moon and beyond, both Nasa and SpaceX are developing new heavy lift rockets: SpaceX’s Starship and Nasa’s Space Launch System.

The Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the highest ranked official in the United States space agency, NASA….List of administrators and deputy administrators of NASA.