Barnstormers in Space

Johnathan Briggs profiles an assortment of D.I.Y. engineers striving for the X Prize: $10 million for the first privately funded voyage to the edge of outer space. They remind me a bit of the old Association of Autonomous Astronauts -- except some of these folks might actually make it.

Comments

[Jean Bart]

Well, the only they would do is launch sattelites into space; at this point that is the only thing that is remotely profitable, despite all the yahoo about making "factories in space" and such supported by the Reagan administrion, et. al.

[Madog]

There might be a market for private research and souveniers too: sample-return missions from nearby asteroids, etc. If costs can be reduced like they hope then there could be a lot of universities who want to run research projects.

[twistedmerkin]

I said lunch, not launch!

[Douglas Fletcher]

Will the AAA pay for the tow if I get a flat tire on Mars?