The personal interests of private sector

As early as the 1970s, a NASA-commissioned study predicted the rise of a space-based economy able of meeting the needs of hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of humans living in space, dwarfing the space-for-earth economy (and, eventually, the entire terrestrial economy as well). Now, however, there is reason to believe that people are nearing the beginnings of a true space-for-space economy.

The private sector is keen to put people in space to pursue their own personal interests instead of those of the state — and then to fulfill the demand they create. This is the vision that has driven SpaceX, which has completely upended the rocket launch industry in its first twenty years, securing 60% of the global commercial launch market and building ever-larger spacecraft designed to ferry passengers not only to the International Space Station (ISS) but also to its own promised settlement on Mars. SpaceX's recent successes (in collaboration with NASA), as well as upcoming efforts by Boeing, Blue Origin, and Virgin Galactic to put humans in space in a sustainable and scalable manner, signal the beginning of a new chapter in spaceflight led by private firms. These companies intend and are able to transport private citizens to space as passengers, tourists, and — eventually — settlers, paving the way for enterprises to begin satisfying the demand for space-for-space goods and services over the next few decades.