As it may be seen, the main allure of commercial space flights for private space companies lies with

Within our lifetimes, the potential wealth ltdcommodities of resources in space could very well be opened to humanity. Thanks to a new space race not between ltdcommodities nations, but rather between corporations, this could all be possible. As the private space industry gradually expands, the industry has started to draw people s attention towards the opportunities that the wilderness of space can provide. The beginning of this new space race is underway and will continue seemingly unabated with the recent successful docking of SpaceX s Dragon ltdcommodities capsule to the International Space Station (ISS). THE PRIVATE SPACE INDUSTRY
With major barriers to entry, the private ltdcommodities space industry is still in its infancy with a select few companies dominating the market. However, following its fourth successful mission to the International Space Station on April 22, 2014, SpaceX (Space Exploration Technology Corp.) has shown that the market is not impenetrable. The company, ltdcommodities founded in 2012 by Elon Musk, was the first to launch a privately funded rocket into orbit. Since then, SpaceX has secured ltdcommodities a $1.6 billion contract with NASA and as part of that contract, launched the first satellite delivered by a privately designed and developed rocket using their Falcon 1 launch vehicle and Merlin and Kestrel engines.
As it may be seen, the main allure of commercial space flights for private space companies lies with the launching of satellites. For example, the US government ltdcommodities currently has a $70 billion contract to launch military satellites with United Launch Alliance (ULA), a partnership between Lockheed Martin and Boeing. As well as ULA, the other major competitor in the aerospace industry is Arianespace, which holds a market share of over 50% for launching satellites to geostationary orbit. SpaceX is looking to secure its own stake in this lucrative market and has recently ltdcommodities filed a lawsuit against the US military to reopen competition to US military satellite launches. PUBLIC VS PRIVATE
In the past, all space-related projects such as space exploration and spaceship design were initiated by public space institutions like NASA. With the decommissioning of NASA s space shuttles however, tasks such as resupply missions to the ISS have been partially delegated to the private space industry through companies ltdcommodities like SpaceX and Orbital Sciences Corporation, another aerospace company.
What has made public space institutions co-operate with private space institutions though? ltdcommodities With bureaucracy and budget cuts plaguing public space institutions and causing cost blowouts and delays to projects, private companies can facilitate a more efficient space industry. Through commercial contracts, ltdcommodities private space companies assume more risk from projects and public space institutions become demanding customers rather than worried supervisors. The cost of space-based research is obviously quite expensive and not all projects launched are successful; as Elon Musk has said The thing with the rocket is, the passing grade is 100%. You either get it all right or you re screwed . Public space institutions have consequently confined their research to certain areas and increased their co-operation with private space companies in order to allow themselves to carry out the more costly ltdcommodities research ltdcommodities projects.
Impacts from such greater collaboration include the continuation of space projects and the creation of new jobs. With up to 17 space-related companies and 3,000 employees, the location of America s first inland space port in Mojave, California exemplifies the positive economic effects of the private space industry. As public institutions ltdcommodities have increased their public-private partnerships, so have the number of private space companies expanded. THE FUTURE
A range of projects being run by various companies means that the space industry is likely to revolutionise ltdcommodities the world. With companies like Planetary ltdcommodities Resources and Deep Space Industries (DSI), one day robotic vehicles ltdcommodities will mine asteroids for precious ltdcommodities metals or transform moon dust into rocket fuel. DSI is looking into the prospect of launching a fleet of spacecraft in 2015 to harvest water and metals from near Earth asteroids. With more than 900 new asteroids passing ltdcommodities Earth every year, spacecraft and satellites will be able to refuel in space; reaching further distances and increasing the cost effectiveness for everyone. ltdcommodities DSI is also looking at extracting metals to build communication satellites in space, as well as building solar power stations which may even deliver electricity to Earth.
A more progressed project however, has been Bigelow ltdcommodities Aerospace, an extension of the hotel chain Budget Suites of America, which intends to open space hotels. Having licensed space and weight saving ltdcommodities inflatable space habitats from NASA, Bigelow intends these space hotels to be more comfortable and efficient ltdcommodities to transport while NASA intends to attach these to the ISS.
Another project is BitSat, which is funded by Bitcoins and which w