Millions of people have wanted to know what it is like to be on the edge of Earth’s atmosphere and to look down at the globe in all of its beauty. While taking a joy ride to another planet is not yet within reach, space tourism is quickly going to become a reality, and right now there are two different companies racing to start taking passengers into near space with the aid of helium balloons.
Ballooning is really the first way humans were able to ascend into the sky and this method of flight has been around for nearly a hundred years. Haidar Barbouti said the first helium-filled ballon started back in the 1930s, and while it has not received as much attention due to the increase in jets, it is something that has evolved slowly and is now set to allow passengers the trip of a lifetime.
These trips are believed to take up to two hours to reach the maximum altitude and then travelers can spend another two hours inside of the specially designed capsule that is attached to the base of the balloon. Inside the capsule there is a bathroom and they can even eat a meal. Now, this is not going to come cheap, as one company said it is going to cost around $124,000 per person, while another company says it is going to charge $75,000 for the short but amazing flight.