Chinese startup begins sales of 2027 $210 thousand space tourism flights

Chinese startup Deep Blue Aerospace has announced the commencement of ticket sales for its suborbital space tourism flights scheduled for 2027, with each ticket priced at approximately 1.5 million yuan (around $210,674). The company pre-sold two tickets during a live-streaming event, offering them at a discounted price of 1 million yuan for early buyers, down from the regular price of 1.5 million yuan. Plans are underway to release more tickets next month.

To secure a place on the flight, interested individuals must make an initial deposit. While it was initially stated that a deposit of 50,000 yuan (about $7,000) is required, Deep Blue Aerospace's customer support indicated that buyers need to pay an online deposit of 100,000 yuan per ticket. The remaining payment must be completed at Deep Blue Aerospace's R&D center in Beijing at the time of signing the contract. Customers purchasing tickets will receive a "1,000-yuan Cultural and Creative Gift Package" and a commemorative model of the Nebula-1 rocket.

The company's suborbital flights will last approximately 12 minutes, during which tourists will experience at least five minutes of weightlessness. The spacecraft will ascend to altitudes between 100 and 150 kilometers, crossing the Kármán line, the internationally recognized boundary between Earth's atmosphere and outer space. Passengers will be seated in a manned capsule that is about 4 meters tall and 3.5 meters in diameter, equipped with six panoramic windows. The spacecraft can accommodate up to six passengers and is designed to be used more than 50 times.

Deep Blue Aerospace is developing the Nebula-1 rocket, its first reusable launch vehicle, which has notable similarities to the reusable vehicles of SpaceX and Blue Origin. The Nebula-1 rocket is powered by liquid oxygen and kerosene and has nine Thunder-R1 engines arranged in a circle around a single engine, similar to the arrangement of SpaceX's Falcon 9. Reusability is essential for competitiveness in the industry, and the company aims to reduce the costs of space tourism through this approach.

In a recent test flight, the Nebula-1 rocket experienced an anomaly in the final landing phase, leading to a fracture in its body. Despite these imperfect results, Zhao Ya, the CEO of Deep Blue Aerospace, stated that the test has provided valuable data and experience. Zhao Ya said that the data and experience from the test will help the company identify problems and deficiencies and improve the performance and reliability of the Nebula-1 rocket. "To ensure the maturity and overall stability of the technology, it is intensively preparing for the next high-altitude recovery test, striving for perfection in every detail," the company stated in its press release.

Deep Blue Aerospace plans to conduct dozens of trials over the next two years to prepare for its commercial launches, including the inaugural launch of the Nebula-2 in late 2025. By 2025, the company expects to demonstrate the landing and recovery of the Nebula-1's first stage for reuse and plans to subject it to multiple recovery and reuse tests. After the tests in 2025, the company will continue conducting different types of tests in 2026 to guarantee the safety of suborbital crewed flights, including dozens of tests on its manned spacecraft and rocket combination.

The decision to sell tickets three years in advance stems from a deep awareness of the complexities and risks involved in rocket technology. Deep Blue Aerospace is dedicated to rigorous research and development, extensive testing, and performance optimization to ensure its rocket meets the highest safety standards. The company requires customers to visit before making their final payment and sign contracts in person.

Deep Blue Aerospace seeks to democratize space travel and lead China's growing commercial space industry, positioning itself as one of the leaders in the innovative space tourism sector. The cost of the space journey from Deep Blue Aerospace is significantly lower than that of competitors like Virgin Galactic, which charges $450,000 per seat. American companies Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic currently offer suborbital space tourism flights, with Blue Origin having launched paying customers to suborbital space. However, due to U.S. sanctions, the markets of the U.S. and China are effectively non-overlapping.

The market for space tourism in China is practically zero, but the company believes that over time, it will significantly increase ticket prices as competitors have done. Sergey Sedov, director of the tourist company Go China, noted that Chinese companies are far from such records in space tourism. He believes that the main clients of Chinese space tourism will be residents of China. "In China, of course, the number of rich people is off the charts, and this company will find its client," Sedov stated. "This is not a mass thing, and they are not the first to do it. Will people from Russia go to China for this project? I'm not sure. And if someone is interested, it seems to me they will have to stand in line behind Chinese compatriots. Safety in the country is actively monitored, and the guilty are seriously punished if something bad happens. Therefore, here people will think 25 times before sending their fellow citizens into space, especially foreigners."

Deep Blue Aerospace aims to align its efforts with the goal of leading commercial space tourism by 2028, a goal stated in a company statement published last month. If everything goes as planned, commercial flights should begin in 2027. The company is just one of several Chinese startups working on reusable launchers, and China seems to be the only country seriously pursuing the revolution that rocket reusability provides. While China is behind in development, in a few years, it could end SpaceX's current hegemony in sending payloads into space.

Sources: Folha de S.Paulo, Portafolio.co, Mundo Deportivo

This article was written in collaboration with generative AI company Alchemiq