In Sci-fi movies and shows, we see space travel as a regular thing to the characters in those futuristic worlds.  But we may be getting closer to achieving that level of normality.  The Virgin Galactic Program offers trips to space for people who are interested in going through the training to get a chance to see outer space.

The Virgin Galactic Program aims to offer normal people with the dream of going into space for fun the opportunity to do so.

“You’ll just need to scrape up about $100,000 first. True, that’s not cheap, but it’s a whole lot better than the $25 million that other space tourists have paid.” said Craig Freudenrich, Ph.D. 

Once somebody has the money, they can’t go into outer space without the proper training.

“There will be 3 days of pre-flight preparation, bonding and training onsite at the spaceport. Learning how to make the most of your time in microgravity and tips on how to be the most comfortable in macro gravity will form an important part of your preparation.” said the Virgin Galactic website.

The program targets anyone who wishes to see our planet from space, or experience what it is like to float around in the free fall of outer space.

“Our goal is to provide you with the most incredible experience of your life. The trip will be intense, exhilarating, and the more that can be simulated beforehand, the better the real thing will be.” said the Virgin Galactic website.

As of right now, astronauts are professionals and often times are in space for months at a time or longer.  With the Virgin Galactic Program, tourists get a quick experience.

SpaceShipTwo takes passengers on a wild two-and-a-half-hour flight, blasting them 360,000 feet (109,728 meters) above the Earth and giving them a four- to five-minute zero-gravity experience (and, as an added bonus, passengers officially become astronauts by traveling more than 50 miles into space). After the brief suborbital flight, the spacecraft re-enters the atmosphere and glides back to Earth.)” explained Freudenrich.

This can be done by launching the shuttle from the air instead of from the ground like they have been launched in the past.  Launching from the air allows for less friction with the air due to it being thinner at higher altitudes, and the shuttle can reach higher speeds faster than it would starting at a standstill from a launch pad.

“The passenger shuttle can hit speeds of 4,000 km/h before turning off its engines, coasting along near the rim of space and gliding down to earth,” explained David Flynn.

The Virgin Galactic program hopes to makes its maiden voyage by Christmas of this year.  This innovation is space travel could bring us to a new era where people save up their money to go on a trip to space instead of a standard vacation.  The price is high now, but as technology improves, this service may one day be an affordable one.