In 2020, the billionaire space race was in full swing. Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk were vying to send everyday astronauts into low orbit for the first time. Each of the billionaires successfully launched at least once, and Bezos and Branson were even passengers aboard their own businesses’ rocket ships. Comercial space travel was reaching new heights, and the momentum appeared unstoppable, at least for a time.
Since then, the aftereffects of the global coronavirus pandemic have had noticeably dampened our outlook on space travel: many are less interested in hearing about Blue Origin’s latest design features, and instead are more concerned with domestic events unfolding here on earth. Among these, the war in Ukraine and, as a byproduct, the recent news that Russia has pulled out of the international space station, would seem to further distance us from the final frontier.
However, in recent days, NASA’s ambitions to land on the moon once again with its Artemis mission have recaptured the public imagination for space travel. Although NASA’s initial SLS rocket test recently failed to launch, a second attempt has now been announced for September 27.
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