A Californian company is planning to build the world's first space hotel and wants to welcome guests by 2027.
Orbital Assembly Corporation bills itself as the world's first large-scale space construction company.
It has plans to open the Voyager Station, part of which will be a luxury hotel in orbit, capable of accommodating up to 400 guests.
Space tourists will be able to check-in at the hotel without any prior astronaut training thanks to the structure's rotating design, which provides near linear gravity.
This also means that toilets and showers will be able to operate normally, and that guests will be able to walk, run and jump inside the structure.
Spacewalks, films and concerts
Spacewalks – where visitors don space suits and head out into the atmosphere – are being billed as one of the hotel's key tourism draws.
The circular VoyagerStation will be 200 metres in diameter, and made up of 24 habitation modules. Each module is 12 metres in diameter and will be constructed of rigid aluminium.
These rotating modules will house restaurants, a space bar, a state-of-the-art gymnasium, cinema, rock-climbing and more. Some could also be used for concerts or sporting events.
Hotel rooms and suites will be located in at least 12 of the rotating modules. The company has plans to open 126 luxury suites, 62 luxury rooms and 30 standard rooms, spread over three levels.
Some of the station's fixed modules will be used for the space station's air, water and power needs.
Gravity as strong as the moon
The unique rotational design of the hotel means that artificial gravity on site will be almost as strong as that on the Moon. That's something that will allow first-time space tourists to book a stay where they will be comfortable.
"Micro-gravity is just brutal on our bodies. We need artificial gravity to be able to live long-term in space," explained Tim Alatorre, co-chief operating officer at Orbital Assembly Corporation.
The hotel will also have 44 Earth Return Vehicles to take travellers to and from the Voyager Station. Each of these can accommodate up to 10 passengers and will glide back from space, with automated flight controls for a landing that would, in theory, be able to happen at any airport runway that handles commercial traffic.
The space station will be used by researchers, private companies and government agencies as a place to train crew that is headed to Mars or the Moon. It will also welcome individual tourists, but if you fancy a trip, know that it won't come cheap. The company estimates recreational space travellers will need a net-worth of about $50 million to take a trip. For that price, travellers are guaranteed a hotel with plenty of atmosphere.
