Move over, Bezos; Virgin Group founder Richard Branson announced on Thursday that he will be taking flight with the crew of his Virgin Galactic space launch on July 11th — nine days before the Amazon founder.
Jeff Bezos has dominated the news with his plan to travel with his Blue Origin space crew on July 20th. But if Branson pulls off this feat, he will be history’s first billionaire to launch into space under the power of his own privately funded spacecraft.
Branson spoke with “Good Morning America” early Friday morning to provide details about the extensive testing and preparation for the upcoming launch.
Is there a feud between Branson and Bezos?
Branson told GMA, “I know that it’s been painted as a race, honestly I don’t think either of us see it that way.” Branson described his history of working on the Virgin Galactic project for nearly 20 years. He said, “We’re both doing something pretty different. The people that go up with us are going up in a spaceship. They launch from a beautiful space port in New Mexico and then Jeff has a different approach. So we’re not really in direct competition. I have enormous respect for what he’s doing, and I know he has enormous respect for what our wonderful team are doing as well.”
While there doesn’t appear to be tension between Branson and Bezos, there certainly is something between Musk and Bezos. The initial jabs came after Musk successfully landed a rocket vertically in 2015. After the successful landing, Bezos tweeted, “Welcome to the club.”
Musk replied with “It is, however, important to clear up the difference between ‘space and ‘orbit,’” making a clear statement about the ability for SpaceX rockets to reach orbit rather than barely touching the space barrier.
At the age of 70, Branson decided to join his team to undergo the same training and experience that future private Virgin Galactic astronauts will endure. There seem to be very few obstacles in Branson’s way as even the Federal Aviation Administration signed off on Virgin Galactic’s request to launch people into space on July 11th.
Branson likely would have reached his goal of launching customers into space years earlier if not for a series of setbacks, including the death of a co-pilot during a test flight accident in 2014.
Branson made his announcement on Twitter by stating, “I’ve always been a dreamer. My mum taught me to never give up and to reach for the stars. On July 11th, it’s time to turn that dream into a reality aboard the next @VirginGalactic spaceflight.”
How far into space will these billionaires really go?
While Branson’s goal is ambitious, the crew will not be circling the moon or getting a close-up view of Mars. Instead, the craft will fly to the microgravity climate above 80 kilometers (49.71 miles). This is the boundary the U.S. officially recognizes as “space.” Then, per CNBC, after spending a couple of minutes in microgravity, Branson and the crew will slowly turn around and return to Earth.
Bezos, on the other hand, plans to go up slightly further than 106 kilometers (65.87 miles) altitude and spend approximately three minutes in space. So while both billionaires will technically reach space, their visit will be short-lived compared to previous NASA astronauts.
Musk had publicly stated his desire to join the other billionaires in space when the time is right. Musk told CNN he’d “like to die on Mars — just not on impact.”
How much is a ticket to space?
Both Bezos and Branson expect to launch others (consumers) into space if the price is right. So if you’re interested in becoming a future Virgin Galactic astronaut, the company has reserved 600 seats on future flights priced between $200,000 and $250,000 each.
Bezos recently announced he would be taking his brother and an auction winner with him. The undisclosed auction winner paid more than $28 million for the 11-minute ride.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX program plans to send a crew of private astronauts to the International Space Station in January of 2022, and according to NPR, each member will pay approximately $55 million.
Ambitious but separate missions
There are distinct differences between the mission of each billionaire. Musk plans on launching astronauts deep into space with the goal of colonizing Mars. Branson and Bezos’s operations are more geared towards providing private citizens the chance to reach the outer limits of Earth’s atmosphere and the ability to experience the microgravity and weightlessness of space.
The Blue Origin website states that the purpose of the project is to decrease the cost and increase the safety of human spaceflight.
Virgin Galactic’s website says their mission is to use space for good to inspire future generations to see Earth from a new perspective.
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