Three lucky businessmen have recently been given the rare opportunity to be launched into space. Elon Musk’s popular aerospace company, SpaceX, officially sent the three wealthy men into orbit this past Friday, April 8, 2022. This specific event marks the corporation’s first private flight to the International Space Station since NASA sent their astronauts approximately two years ago.
An Israeli, American, and Canadian man will soon land at the space station and are reportedly set to return into the earth’s atmosphere next Tuesday, April 19. Former NASA astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria gave his opinions on his own experience, “It was a hell of a ride and we’re looking forward to the next 10 days,” he stated. During their 9-10 days at the space station, each member of the group will conduct a series of experiments that will hopefully fulfill the curiosity that they had before departing from the earth.
The ‘space tourists’ have also been specifically informed to stay away from the topic of politics in order to avoid any conflict of interest regarding the current situation that is taking place between Russia, Ukraine, and the United States. “I honestly think it won’t be awkward, maybe a tiny bit… the spirit of collaboration will shine through,” Lopez-Alegria claimed. Prior to their launch, he also told The Associated Press that, “there is no fuzz, I think, on what the dangers are or what the bad days could look like,” in regards to any worries new passengers might have when boarding this specific flight: Lopez-Alegria spent approximately seven months at the International Space Station about 15 years ago, making him one of the more experienced astronauts on the rocket.