The $9.2m price tag includes launch to the Aurora Station. Orion Span
If you have ever dreamed of sleeping in an 11-by-4 meter (35-by-14 foot) module orbiting 322 kilometers (200 miles) above Earth, then you’re in luck.
That is, if you’re a millionaire. For a cool $9.5 million (“far below what others have paid to go to space”), you can have the chance to hang out in the world’s first luxury space hotel. You can even secure your spot on the waitlist for just $80,000, which is fully refundable should you get cold feet.
Yes, it seems a little pricey, but it is an all-inclusive 12-day journey into space.
Space technology startup company Orion Span Inc. plans to launch Aurora Station, the world’s first “luxury space hotel”, in 2021, with guests heading onboard the following year. Designed for both space travelers and agencies, guests can expect to hang out in zero gravity, soar over your hometown, take part in research experiments like growing food in orbit (which you can take home as a souvenir), experience virtual reality on a "holodeck", and of course live stream your friends because who wouldn’t have FOMO?
Named after the aurora borealis – which the company says you can see from your seat – the station will hang out in low Earth orbit (LEO), orbiting the planet every 90 minutes. You’ll see an average of 16 sunrises and sunsets every 24 hours. It should be a pretty stellar view considering the station boasts the “most number of windows ever created for spaceflight.” The module has room for six people, including two crewmembers. For the romantic, private suites are available for couples.
It’s not all fun and games. You will have to take part in a three-month Orion Span Astronaut Certification (OSAC) process. Phase one is done online. The next portion will take place at Orion Span’s training facility in Texas, with the third phase completed on board the space station.
The price tag also includes the launch to the space station, which has not yet been secured by a provider, according to Bloomberg, who speculate that Orion’s announcement earlier this week could be a marketing gimmick to assess public interest in the endeavor.
Nevertheless, it seems like a pretty wild ride – literally. If you like your stay aboard the Aurora, Orion says you have the option to make a bigger investment in the future.
“Our architecture is such that we can easily add capacity, enabling us to grow with market demand like a city growing skyward on Earth,” said Orion Span CEO Frank Bunger in a statement emailed to IFLScience. “We will later sell dedicated modules as the world’s first condominiums in space. Future Aurora owners can live in, visit, or sublease their space condo. This is an exciting frontier and Orion Span is proud to pave the way."
If Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence are included as Passengers, then we’re sold.
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