[extropy-chat] (U.S.) Government releases proposed space travel rules

[Joseph Bloch]

The full text of the proposed regulations may be found at 
http://frwebgate5.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/waisgate.cgi?WAISdocID=902051483587+0+0+0&WAISaction=retrieve

Comments, I should point out, are solicited (instructions right at the 
top of the 120-page document).

Here's an article on the subject. I'm sure there are (and will be) more.

 From http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,180126,00.html

*Thinking of spending that next vacation on the moon or Mars or circling 
the Earth? Before liftoff, there's a list of things the would-be "space 
flight participant" should know.*

More than 120 pages of proposed rules, released by the government 
Thursday, regulate the future of *space tourism* 
<javascript:siteSearch('space tourism');>. This don't-forget list 
touches on everything from passenger medical standards to preflight 
training for the crew.

Before taking a trip that literally is out of this world, companies 
would be required to inform the "space flight participant" — known in 
more earthly settings as simply a passenger — of the risks. Passengers 
also would be required to provide written consent before boarding a 
vehicle for takeoff.

Legislation signed a year ago by President Bush and designed to help the 
space industry flourish prohibits the Federal Aviation Administration 
<http://www.faa.gov/> from issuing safety regulations for passengers and 
crew for eight years, unless specific design features or operating 
practices cause a serious or fatal injury.

"This means that the FAA has to wait for harm to occur or almost occur 
before it can impose restrictions, even against foreseeable harm," the 
proposal says. "Instead, Congress requires that space flight 
participants be informed of the risks."

Physical exams for passengers are recommended, but will not be required, 
"unless a clear public safety need is identified," the FAA says in the 
proposed regulations.

Passengers also would have to be trained on how to respond during 
emergencies, including the loss of cabin pressure, fire and smoke, as 
well as how to get out of the vehicle safely.

Pilots, meanwhile, must have an FAA pilot certificate and be able to 
show that they know how to operate the vehicle. Student or sport pilot 
licenses would not qualify.

Each member of the crew must have a medical certificate issued within a 
year of the flight, and a crew member's physical and mental state must 
"be sufficient to perform safety-related roles," the rules say.

The FAA also would require each crew member to be trained to ensure that 
the vehicle will not harm the public, such as if it had to be abandoned 
during a flight emergency.

The legislation that Bush signed last year tasked the FAA with coming up 
with rules to regulate the commercial space flight industry, which has 
been slowly getting off the ground.

Laws governing private sector space endeavors, such as satellite 
launches, have existed for some time. But there previously has been no 
legal jurisdiction for regulating commercial human spaceflight.

In 2001, California businessman Dennis Tito became the world's first 
space tourist when he rode a Russian Soyuz capsule to the international 
space station. Mark Shuttleworth, a South African Internet magnate, 
followed a year later on a similar trip, also paying $20 million for the 
ride.

Last year, in a feat considered a breakthrough for the future of private 
spaceflight, Burt Rutan won the $10 million Ansari X Prize by rocketing 
his SpaceShipOne to the edge of space twice in five days.

Two months ago, Greg Olsen, who made millions at a Princeton, N.J., 
technology company, became the world's third paying space tourist, also 
on a jaunt to the international space station.

The 123-page proposal was published Thursday in the Federal Register, 
the government's daily publication of rules and regulations, and will be 
subject to public comment for 60 days, through Feb. 27.

Final regulations are expected by June 23.