Space Hotels Could Soon Be Possible Thanks To SpaceX CEO Elon Musk

The launch of Elon Musk’s Crew Dragon has signaled what could be the first step in commercializing space travel and possibly paving the way for space tourism.

NASA and SpaceX saw the Crew Dragon mission as a critical step to the future. Although the flight did not contain human passengers and only brought with it a female crash-test dummy named Ripley and 400 pounds of cargo, NASA considers the venture as a promising step to spaceflight.

"Tonight was a big night for the United States of America, a great night for NASA. But what today really represents is a new era in spaceflight," Jim Bridenstine, NASA's administrator, said during a press briefing at Kennedy Space Center. Bridenstine also noted that Crew Dragon would allow increased human access to space at lower costs. The United States and NASA could be seen as customers of the space marketplace.

Jonathan O'Callaghan of Forbes also sees this as a step toward making space hotels a reality. Boeing's upcoming Starliner and Crew Dragon could make it easier for people to have space access in the near future. There are already companies developing space hotels for Crew Dragon passengers. For example, Nevada-based Bigelow Aerospace said it is planning to launch space hotel components in 2021. The company previously worked on a prototype habitat that was attached to the ISS in 2016.

NASA said in a post in 2016 that the agency has been investing in "habitats that can keep astronauts healthy during space exploration." In the same post, NASA announced the successful installation of the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM) to the space station.

Bigelow is currently working on a habitat called B330, which is described to have 330 cubic meters of interior space. The company is hoping to launch two of these habitats into space in 2021 with the help of United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V rockets.

“Once Dragon is in regular operation, I think we will seek commercial customers,” Elon Musk said during the Crew Dragon's press briefing, suggesting that possible customers for space hotels could indeed fly to them soon.

Musk also hinted at his ambitions beyond the Earth’s orbit. He said that there should be a permanent human base on the Moon.