In the News: Bezos vs. Branson, Reaching for the Stars

Branson's VSS Unity. (Publicity still)

Has anyone been paying attention to the new Space Race? It used to be the U.S. and Soviet Union striving for leadership. Today it appears to be a battle of the egos. Sir Richard Branson, who turns 71 this month, may not have the big bucks his rival has, but 5.7 billion dollars is nothing to scoff at. 

Branson is set to be first to take flight into the earth's outer canopy, though it's unlikely he will ever be first as far as wealth goes. Jeffrey B currently makes nearly $150,000 per minute based on data from August 2020. Or $3,715 per second if you prefer. Total net worth is over 200 billion. 

Then there's Elon Musk with his SpaceX program. With a 162 billion dollar net worth, he's certainly got enough ka-ching to get into this game as well. And of the three programs, Musk was actually first to send people into outer space, having sent four astronauts to the Space Shuttle in April. What Bezos and Branson are doing is sending tourists, not astronauts. They themselves happen to be going along for the ride.

All three appear to be possibility thinkers. They dream big and have the resources to create things that seem larger than life.

Regarding Branson's flight tomorrow, it will be a very different kind of deployment. Virgin Galactic's VSS Unity will be carried aloft by a large jet called the White Night Two from which the space craft will be fired up and take off near the jet's highest altitude. It's unusual looking, something akin to a shuttlecock that you might use in badminton. It certainly conveys a sense of futurism when you see it.

It not only torques Bezos that Branson is going to be first into outer space, but that Branson is calling it "outer space" when to Bezos -- and some others -- it doesn't really seem like outer space. If I understand the debate, Branson is calling the altitude of 80 km as outer space, whereas Bezos -- who will soon take passengers via his New Shepard -- says scientists have named 100 km as the Karman Line.  I doubt that there will be any signs up there saying exactly where the border is, or people waiting up there to check their passports.

Inside the New Shepard's capsule. 

There was room for one more passenger on Bezos' flight so they auctioned off that seat and are being paid a cool 28 million for this privilege. The money will be donated to their non-profit Club for the Future which trains kids for STEM careers.

Bezos' rocket, the New Shepard, is named after Alan Shepard, America' first astronaut. I find it quite astonishing that Mr. Bezos' rocket is a reusable craft. The same rocket has made made more than a dozen flights already. This will be the first with passengers. The New Shepard was designed to hold six passengers and has plenty of windows so they can enjoy the view. The zero gravity experience will last only about three minutes, it seems, a little over nine million dollars a minute for that last passenger.

Bezos & his company Blue Origin selected July 20 as their official debut. That day marks the 52nd anniversary of man's first walk on the moon. There's a lot of symbolism in all these names and events surrounding the renewed space exploration mania.

Not everyone can afford a million dollar ticket to the rim of the atmosphere, so I personally hope they've set up video cameras that can turn it into an affordable Virtual Reality experience for the rest of us. What do you think?

Related Links

Lessons from the Virgin Billionaire

My Hero Jeff Bezos