Did We Just See A Kitty Hawk Moment?
On December 17, 1903, history was made. The Wright Flyer made its historic flight near Kitty Hawk, N.C.
It is something that we take for granted 116 years later. Air travel generates hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue when we account for all the services that surround it. Everything we see today pertaining to the industry can point to that moment as the start.
While space travel is something that we saw more than half a century ago, we just witnessed what could be the onset of an entirely new industry.
SpaceX launched two astronauts into space yesterday. This was a first for a private company. The only people to enter space were put there by governments.
In the short term, this means the United States can access the International Space Station without having to hitch a ride with the Russians.
Longer term, would could see the start of an industry such as space tourism. While Virgin Galactic received a great deal of attention, it appears that SpaceX will start offering rides before anyone else. The goal is to provide orbital flights beginning next year.
Of course, people make up only a portion of what flies. Cargo is enormous business for the airlines. Thus, we can see something similar with space.
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As plans are made to start going to the moon and Mars, there is going to have to be a lot of supplies available, especially for settlement. Rockets are going to carry much of what is needed, at least in the early days. Technology will ultimately get to the point where a lot can be done using nano factories. In the meantime, SpaceX and others are going to have to act like Roadway or UPS.
Tourism is just one opportunity for space. We are already seeing some ideas of ways to access it for other purposes.
Recently it was announced that Tom Cruise contracted with SpaceX to film part of a movie in space. This likely will not be the last deal of this kind.
We also could see a lot of marketing opportunities as companies seek to gain more exposure. What better way to get some attention then to have your logo imprinted upon the side of something that everyone is watching?
Space traditionally is a mecca for research. Big Pharma often used the breakthroughs in space for new medications that people use here on Earth. Looking forward, something such as Space Manufacturing, aka zero gravity, will be commonplace.
While space flight is expensive, it is not impossible. Thus, we could see an industry that forms over the next decade. With air travel, it took the better part of 50 years before it became commonplace. Travelling by train was still common in the 1950s.
Companies like SpaceX are going to ensure that, over time, costs keep coming down. What costs $50 million today could be a quarter of that in 10 years.
Space will offer up some incredible opportunities for companies over the next couple decades. Of course, as with most new industries, figuring out the winners and losers is not easy.
Nevertheless, May 30th, 2020 could end up being a very historic day.
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