Historically, most of the population has viewed space as intangible – both figuratively and literally. Part of this notion comes from space flight’s long-standing status as a highly exclusive professional gateway – one rooted in a select few means of necessary training and education. Now, as space flight slowly becomes commercialized and increasingly possible for everyday citizens, the astronaut training sector has had the chance to grow in tandem, opening more pathways for in-depth space preparation and properly equipping new generations of space travelers.
One such outlet is Orbite, a prevailing space training program aiming to reflect, embrace, and accommodate space flight’s rapid democratization. Founded in 2019, the company is currently beginning work on its first groups of trainees, positioning itself to make a considerable impact on the space sector in the coming years.
Orbite’s suite of training offerings includes astronaut orientation, suborbital training, orbital basic training, orbital mission specialization, and specialized destination training. The company has designed each phase of this process to give interested space travelers foundational program knowledge and a natural progression of subsequent practical training modules.
Along the way, trainees can experience a variety of common factors related to space travel, including microgravity environments, G-force experiences, technological and vehicular utilization, and space-oriented food and sustenance. Modules also focus on adjacent necessities like astronaut health and safety, emergency protocol, setback mitigation, and mental and spiritual preparation for long-term space exposure.
As of late last year, Orbite had been raising the necessary capital and resources to bring these plans to fruition through a state-of-the-art training facility planned for Florida’s Space Coast. The company is currently targeting an opening date of 2026, with campus features set to include “human spaceflight mission requirements, including a centrifuge, neutral buoyancy facility, proprietary virtual reality training, commercial spacecraft vehicle simulators, space suit familiarization, and a space food lab.”
Once operational, the Orbite campus will commence training of its inaugural classes, broadening the scope of space travel and, ideally, helping to catalyze a new era of opportunity for aspiring astronauts nationwide. The campus’s array of planned resources stand to push the collective space training field to be more comprehensive, multidimensional, and focused on delivering quality, immersive training to ensure astronaut readiness and well-being.
Training opportunities like Orbite represent a bold, invaluable shift within space infrastructure, bolstering space flight’s evolution into a tangible, accessible reality. In this sense, these resources will likely be a cornerstone of the space sector’s immediate future.
Photo via Orbite
