SAN DIEGO — With the Space-X and Blue Origin space programs making history with civilians and tourists launching into orbit, News 8 spoke with Jim Kidrick, President and C.E.O. of the San Diego Air & Space Museum about what’s on the horizon with the future of space exploration.
“It’s opening up something that we never thought would open up, especially this quickly, and that’s what’s exciting,” said Jim.
The recent Space-X mission sent four non-astronauts into space from the Kennedy Space Center, and after a few days in orbit, they made a splashdown landing Saturday night in the Atlantic Ocean.
“The most exciting part I think was the splashdown. Some of us may think that that’s routine but it’s not,” said Kidrick. “It really proves the technology, the concepts, the designs. I think they’re doing it right.”
Aerospace science has come a long way since the early days of NASA and the Apollo missions.
“There is more technology in my cell phone than they had in the Apollo capsule and so you think of what they accomplished,” said Kidrick.
As Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and their teams continue to push forward with space flight innovations, Richard Branson’s space plane may end up being the most accessible option for people who want to experience space.
“I think that’s the true tourism ride where somebody gets to go up, they’re weightless for 3-4-5 minutes max, and then they’re back down, they land, and they can go do it again,” said Jim. “Who has ever had a chance to go into space? Once pricing starts dropping. You know that’s still about a quarter-million dollars a ride, and that’s not an Uber to dinner.”
Looking ahead, Jim sees no limits to what can be accomplished with that pioneering spirit, creativity, and innovation driving us to explore further.
“Our nation and other nations, we want to go back to the moon,” said Jim. “We want to go to Mars. We’re into deep space exploration. From my perspective, I encourage every young person in the world, not just in our country, who has an interest in space -- technicians, engineers, mission control, astronauts, whatever it may be -- this is the time. It’s going to be off the charts.”
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