Doors Open for a New Era of Private Space Travel

If you've always wanted to travel to the moon, you just may be able to sooner than you think, now that the door has opened for private industries to launch missions into space. Although the first missions will be carrying cargo, private space exploration companies have grand plans for the future of space travel.

On Saturday, May 19, 2012, a company called SpaceX launches the first private mission to the International Space Station, with the capsule Dragon. Dragon departs from Cape Canaveral , Florida, on Saturday and, if all goes well, will dock on Tuesday at the space station.

NASA abandoned plans to transport freight into space in July 2011, when its fleet of space shuttles retired. Dragon's flight will test the waters for NASA to outsource its equipment and eventually crew carrying missions to private companies.

NASA has already paid SpaceX $1.6 billion to develop Dragon and fly 12 missions to carry cargo to the space station. Saturday's launch will be a test, and if it succeeds, the next 12 missions will begin launching in the fall.

NASA has also outsourced cargo carrying missions to Orbital Sciences Corp. By paying private companies to transport supplies and tools, NASA is aiming to free itself up for deeper space exploration beyond low-Earth orbit, setting sights on asteroids, Mars and the moon.

Private companies such as SpaceX and Planetary Resources can reap the rewards of NASA's new strategy, making profits from carrying equipment and tools through space. Private companies also have laid out plans to fund more space exploration with increased funds.

Planetary Resources is a private company that has announced plans to investigate and mine rare metals from asteroids. Studying these metals can provide information about the building blocks forming our own planet Earth. Cultivating knowledge about large asteroids can also help humans figure out how to prevent asteroids from crashing into the Earth and wreaking havoc.

Private companies' discoveries in space are also motivated by profits, but the profits can be used to fund more research, many companies argue. The company Alliant Techsystems Inc., for instance, plans to use its Liberty rocket to launch humans into orbit by 2015.

So in just three years, your dreams of flying through space may come true. All eyes will be on Dragon to predict how just how soon these grand plans may unfold.