Abstract

While there are plans for spacecraft to take private travellers to the edge of space, we are yet to see this occur beyond a few individuals. Before this happens in larger numbers, research is needed about the sustainability of private space flight, including potential travellers’ awareness of and views about the environmental implications of their spaceflight. This article aims to address this gap by examining the travel motivations of frontier tourists – those individuals who seek to visit some of the most fragile locations on and off the planet, including outer space – connected to the environmental sustainability of this travel. Given space tourism is a subset of frontier tourism, studying the latter might help us to understand the behaviour of the nascent space tourist. Qualitative interviews with frontier tourists were conducted and analysed using grounded theory techniques. While participants referred to the unspoilt characteristics of places, untainted by human activity, as an integral part of their travel experience, many did not see the paradox inherent in this travel. Some who did referred to prosocial motivations connected to environmental causes and saw themselves as ambassadors for conservation. The article concludes with the implications of these findings for sustainable space tourism.

摘要

虽然航天器计划将私人旅行者带到太空边缘，但我们还没有看到这种情况发生在少数人之外。在这种情况大量发生之前，需要对私人太空飞行的可持续性进行研究，包括潜在旅行者对其太空飞行对环境影响的认识和看法。本文旨在通过研究边境游客的旅行动机来解决这一差距——这些人寻求访问地球内外一些最脆弱的地方，包括外太空——与这次旅行的环境可持续性有关。鉴于太空旅游是边境旅游的一个子集，研究后者可能有助于我们了解新生太空游客的行为。使用扎根理论技术对边境游客进行了定性访谈并进行了分析。虽然参与者将未受人类活动污染的地方未受破坏的特征作为他们旅行经历的一个组成部分，但许多人并没有看到这次旅行中固有的悖论。一些人确实提到了与环境原因相关的亲社会动机，并将自己视为保护大使。文章最后总结了这些发现对可持续太空旅游的影响。一些人确实提到了与环境原因相关的亲社会动机，并将自己视为保护大使。文章最后总结了这些发现对可持续太空旅游的影响。一些人确实提到了与环境原因相关的亲社会动机，并将自己视为保护大使。文章最后总结了这些发现对可持续太空旅游的影响。