https://www.scmp.com/rss/519717/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Virgin Galactic is now discreetly soliciting interest in Asia, on the lookout for people with an out-of-this-world sense of adventure matched with an astronomically large bank account for trips on its space tourism flights. For anyone in Asia ready to boldly go where few have gone before, Hong Kong-based luxury travel agent Intriq Journey was recently appointed Virgin Galactic’s agent in the continent. “But this is not like purchasing luxury goods,” explains James Willoughby, the vice-president... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3277482/virgin-galactic-solicits-space-tourism-interest-asia-flights-priced-us600000?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3277482/virgin-galactic-solicits-space-tourism-interest-asia-flights-priced-us600000?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Sep 2024 23:15:10 +0000 Although travel agencies have been vanishing from high streets worldwide, it seems that reports of their complete demise may have been exaggerated. For those concerned above all to obtain the best price, the internet now provides the opportunity to compare the costs of 17 alternative ways of going almost anywhere, and then 17 ways of booking, be it flights, hotels or entire packages. Agencies working with narrow margins on high volumes of straight-from-the-brochure sales have been hit hard in... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3275299/fancy-flying-volcano-or-fishing-mountain-lake-travel-consultants-are-here-execute-your-wildest?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3275299/fancy-flying-volcano-or-fishing-mountain-lake-travel-consultants-are-here-execute-your-wildest?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 27 Aug 2024 08:45:09 +0000 Meet Kellie Gerardi: mum, researcher, astronaut and author, who became the 90th woman in history to fly to space. Oh, and she’s also a TikTok star. Last November, Gerardi joined a Virgin Galactic crew for her first flight to space as a payload specialist. She conducted healthcare research funded by the International Institute for Astronautical Sciences (IIAS) – and became one of the world’s first industry-sponsored researchers to fly on a commercial spacecraft. According to Virgin Galactic’s... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/people/icons-influencers/article/3267464/meet-beautiful-astronaut-and-tiktok-star-kellie-gerardi-35-year-old-mum-joined-virgin-galactic-crew?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/people/icons-influencers/article/3267464/meet-beautiful-astronaut-and-tiktok-star-kellie-gerardi-35-year-old-mum-joined-virgin-galactic-crew?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 23 Jun 2024 22:00:16 +0000 A start-up in Sapporo, Hokkaido, hopes to popularise high-altitude travel by sending people into the stratosphere in a helium balloon from Japan’s northernmost main island, enabling them to view a stunning spectacle of Earth from above. In a manned test flight in late July, the balloon reached a record-high altitude of 6km (19,700ft). It is expected to attain its final target, a height of 25km, by the end of 2023. Iwaya, which started the project, says that if the balloon can reach such an... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3233297/travel-edge-space-balloon-price-us164000-japanese-start-promising-stunning-views-earth-25km?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3233297/travel-edge-space-balloon-price-us164000-japanese-start-promising-stunning-views-earth-25km?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 Sep 2023 04:45:12 +0000 Virgin Galactic rocketed to the edge of space with its first tourists on Thursday, including a former British Olympian who bought his ticket 18 years ago and a mother-daughter duo from the Caribbean. The space plane glided back to a runway landing at Spaceport America in the New Mexico desert, after a brief flight that gave passengers a few minutes of weightlessness. Cheers erupted from families and friends watching from below when the craft’s rocket motor fired after it was released from the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3230696/virgin-galactic-flies-its-first-tourists-edge-space?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3230696/virgin-galactic-flies-its-first-tourists-edge-space?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 10 Aug 2023 17:47:49 +0000 The last time humans witnessed supersonic travel was the legendary Concorde, which operated from 1973 to 2003. Equipped with four powerful engines, the super-speedy plane could journey from New York to London in less than four hours – a tremendous feat for the era. However, the aircraft’s costly inefficiencies and risky operation forced airlines to retire it after 30 years of service. No manufacturer has yet been able to recreate the days of the Concorde, but some are trying. Denver-based Boom... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3227395/tokyo-new-york-1-hour-hypersonic-stargazer-jet-aims-best-concorde?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3227395/tokyo-new-york-1-hour-hypersonic-stargazer-jet-aims-best-concorde?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 12 Jul 2023 05:01:07 +0000 A European space telescope blasted off on Saturday on a quest to explore the mysterious and invisible realm known as the dark universe. SpaceX launched the European Space Agency’s Euclid observatory toward its ultimate destination 1.5 million km (930,000 miles) away, the Webb Space Telescope’s neighbourhood. It will take a month to get there and another two months before it starts its ambitious six-year survey this autumn. Named for antiquity’s Greek mathematician, Euclid will scour billions of... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3226262/european-telescope-launched-quest-clues-universes-darkest-secrets?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3226262/european-telescope-launched-quest-clues-universes-darkest-secrets?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 01 Jul 2023 18:25:03 +0000 Clad in a blue jumpsuit and dangling from the side of a skyscraper 360 metres above New York, billionaire Richard Branson urged viewers on Twitter last week to live life to the fullest and try new things. As the founder of space tourism company Virgin Galactic, Branson is among a handful of ultra-wealthy entrepreneurs pushing the limits of exploration and experiences. Some billionaires, including Branson and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, have rocketed into space, while other rich travellers have... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3226083/blue-origin-offers-space-tourism-and-doomed-oceangate-titan-went-titanic-most-rich-travellers-want?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3226083/blue-origin-offers-space-tourism-and-doomed-oceangate-titan-went-titanic-most-rich-travellers-want?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 01 Jul 2023 09:15:12 +0000 For years, British billionaire Richard Branson vowed that commercial space flights with his firm Virgin Galactic were just around the corner. On Thursday, that hype finally became reality when three Italian researchers boarded the VSS Unity space plane as Virgin Galactic’s first paying passengers and flew about four minutes in suborbital space. The researchers – Colonel Walter Villadei and Lieutenant Colonel Angelo Landolfi of the Italian Air Force and Pantaleone Carlucci, an engineer with the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3226000/virgin-galactic-takes-its-first-paying-customers-space?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3226000/virgin-galactic-takes-its-first-paying-customers-space?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 29 Jun 2023 17:11:40 +0000 Ernest Chang’s solo exhibition “Space Rich”, at The Stallery in Wan Chai on Hong Kong Island, transports the viewer to another world. But do not worry – on this barren Mars landscape you can still use your smartphone, check into a luxury hotel and buy a designer handbag, all while sipping that well-known brand of sugary cola. Showcasing five sculptures and 14 screen-prints on perspex, some with complicated moving parts and all presented in locally made silver frames, “Space Rich” takes a swipe... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/3216134/mars-became-escape-hong-kong-artist-during-pandemic-now-his-work-uses-space-and-red-planet-mock?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/3216134/mars-became-escape-hong-kong-artist-during-pandemic-now-his-work-uses-space-and-red-planet-mock?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 06 Apr 2023 09:15:16 +0000 Considering how long I have been playing the game, I am probably the worst stock punter you will ever come across. Name a novice investor mistake and I have made it, many times, over and over. Chasing fads; holding good stocks too short and bad stocks too long; refusing to take a small loss and ending with an even bigger loss – I am a walking investment disaster. Catching a falling knife? Boy, I am surprised I still have any fingers left. Oh, and Sino-Forest, total loss for me and my late mother... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3211719/marxist-guide-investing-american-stock-market?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3211719/marxist-guide-investing-american-stock-market?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Feb 2023 13:00:19 +0000 Your celebrity-themed holiday is all booked. You’ve organised flights and a hotel, restaurant tables and visits to vineyards. You’ve even put some money aside for a flutter in the casino. In truth, a world tour of places owned by global superstars probably isn’t feasible, but it might be fun to try – especially if we’re allowed to use a time machine. Anyone strolling along Canton Road, Kowloon, on the evening on May 29, 1994, would have noticed the crowds and commotion, the gridlocked traffic... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3207514/lionel-messi-cristiano-ronaldo-rafael-nadal-bts-jin-and-donald-trump-celebrities-tourism-business?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3207514/lionel-messi-cristiano-ronaldo-rafael-nadal-bts-jin-and-donald-trump-celebrities-tourism-business?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Jan 2023 08:15:09 +0000 A Chinese research facility developing an ultra-fast hyperloop train has completed its first test runs using a full-sized passenger capsule, according to media reports. China Space News reported on Wednesday that three test runs were completed at a superconducting maglev test line in Datong, Shanxi province. The project aims to eventually carry passengers and cargo at a speed of 1,000km/h (621mph) or faster in a near-vacuum tube and, if successful, would be the world’s fastest ground-based... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3207355/chinas-hyperloop-completes-first-test-runs-pushing-ahead-race-ultra-fast-land-transport?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3207355/chinas-hyperloop-completes-first-test-runs-pushing-ahead-race-ultra-fast-land-transport?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Jan 2023 07:00:12 +0000 Thirty-two. That was the number of years I lived before a doctor diagnosed me with attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD). The unexpected surprise was followed by frustration, that I hadn’t sought help earlier, anger, that so little was understood about it, and sadness, as I considered how the past could have been different. ADHD is surprisingly poorly named, as it is not a deficit of attention but instead, an increase in focus on things one finds interesting. Mine is merely one condition... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3201409/neurodiverse-talent-untapped-resource-across-asia-pacific?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3201409/neurodiverse-talent-untapped-resource-across-asia-pacific?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 03 Dec 2022 00:15:10 +0000 China may be able to send its first paying passengers on suborbital trips to the edge of space as early as 2025, according to a top rocket scientist. Yang Yiqiang, who was the general director of the Long March 11 rocket project in 2018 and founder of a government-backed company to explore commercial use of rockets, said commercial space tourism would be in “full bloom” in 2027. “With the refinement of the business model, China is expected to start suborbital travel in 2025, which costs around... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3192880/next-stop-space-chinese-firm-aims-suborbital-tourist-trips-2025?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3192880/next-stop-space-chinese-firm-aims-suborbital-tourist-trips-2025?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 17 Sep 2022 12:30:09 +0000 Hong Kong has slipped one place to become the fourth most expensive city on the planet for luxury goods and services, according to a report released by Swiss private bank Julius Baer on Wednesday. A sharp drop in hotel room prices as the pandemic barred the way for big-spending foreign tourists dragged the city down below Shanghai, London and Taipei. Hong Kong’s hospitality industry suffered a 39 per cent fall in average hospitality prices as the ferocious fifth wave of Covid-19 kept visitors at... https://www.scmp.com/business/money/spending/article/3181732/hong-kong-slips-one-place-fourth-most-expensive-city-luxury?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/money/spending/article/3181732/hong-kong-slips-one-place-fourth-most-expensive-city-luxury?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 Jun 2022 02:09:00 +0000 Jeff Bezos’s company Blue Origin flew six tourists into space for a 10-minute ride Saturday, successfully carrying out its fifth crewed mission. The white spacecraft called New Shepard lifted off with a roar from a desert spot in west Texas at 8.26am local time. The crew hooted with glee as the rocket reached space, a Blue Origin webcast showed. The flight included engineer Katya Echazarreta, who at 26 became the youngest American woman in space. The Guadalajara native also became the first... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3180448/bezoss-blue-origin-flight-space-5th-crewed-mission?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3180448/bezoss-blue-origin-flight-space-5th-crewed-mission?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 Jun 2022 15:30:49 +0000 Max Verstappen’s Formula One career began before he was legally old enough to drive in certain countries. He was the youngest F1 driver at 17, the youngest Grand Prix winner at 18, and Netherlands’ first World Champion at 24. During this time, he has amassed a small fortune through salaries, bonuses and sponsorships. According to Forbes, Verstappen was the second-best-paid driver behind Lewis Hamilton and the 27th highest-earning sportsman in 2021, raking in a comfortable US$42.5... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/celebrity/article/3178809/inside-max-verstappens-lavish-lifestyle-f1-world-champion?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/celebrity/article/3178809/inside-max-verstappens-lavish-lifestyle-f1-world-champion?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 May 2022 02:00:21 +0000 Billionaire Elon Musk’s SpaceX is poised to become the most valuable US start-up as its valuation rose to over US$125 billion in an ongoing share sale in the secondary market, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. The shares, which are marketed at about US$72, jumped in valuation from last October, when SpaceX’s shares were sold at US$56 apiece after a 10-1 split and valued the rocket company at US$100 billion. No new shares have been issued in the secondary offering, but the company... https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3178143/elon-musks-spacex-poised-become-most-valuable-us-start-us125-billion?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3178143/elon-musks-spacex-poised-become-most-valuable-us-start-us125-billion?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 May 2022 03:15:23 +0000 A new entrant in the space tourism market promises customers views of the Earth’s curvature from the comfort of a luxury cabin, lifted to the upper atmosphere with a giant balloon. Space Perspective on April 12 revealed illustrations of its swish cabins, which it hopes to start launching from the Kennedy Space Centre, in Florida in the United States, from late 2024. More than 600 tickets have so far been sold, at US$125,000 each. With windows 1.5 metres (five feet) high, deep seats, dark, purple... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3174124/luxury-space-travel-balloon-takes-600-people-pay-us125000?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3174124/luxury-space-travel-balloon-takes-600-people-pay-us125000?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 13 Apr 2022 11:15:18 +0000 The first all-private team of astronauts ever launched to the International Space Station (ISS) were welcomed aboard the orbiting research platform on Saturday to begin a weeklong science mission hailed as a milestone in commercial space flight. Their arrival came about 21 hours after the four-man team representing Houston-based start-up company Axiom Space Inc lifted off on Friday from Nasa’s Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, riding atop a SpaceX-launched Falcon 9 rocket. The Crew Dragon capsule... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3173719/first-all-private-astronaut-team-welcomed-aboard?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3173719/first-all-private-astronaut-team-welcomed-aboard?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 09 Apr 2022 19:28:28 +0000 A SpaceX rocket ship blasted off on Friday carrying the first all-private astronaut team ever launched to the International Space Station (ISS), a flight hailed by industry executives and Nasa as a milestone in the commercialisation of low-Earth orbit. The four-man team selected by Houston-based startup Axiom Space Inc for its landmark debut spaceflight and orbital science mission lifted off at 11.17 am Eastern Time from Nasa’s Kennedy Space Centre in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Live video webcast... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3173654/spacex-rocket-launches-first-all-private-astronaut?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3173654/spacex-rocket-launches-first-all-private-astronaut?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 Apr 2022 15:55:22 +0000 “If you build it, they will come” – even if there’s nowhere for them to stay. The origin of the maxim is generally considered to be the 1989 movie Field of Dreams, in which farmer Ray, the character played by Kevin Costner, hears a mysterious voice while he’s out in a cornfield. “If you build it, he will come,” says the voice, the “it” being the baseball field in the middle of nowhere our protagonist has been dreaming of constructing and the “he” a long-dead baseball player Ray... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3167982/indonesian-motorcycle-grand-prix-how-island-only?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3167982/indonesian-motorcycle-grand-prix-how-island-only?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 23 Feb 2022 00:45:17 +0000 In 1957, when Russia shocked the world with the launch of its first Sputnik satellite, Mao Zedong is said to have lamented that China could not even get a potato into space. Sixty-five years later, President Xi Jinping’s “space dream” now includes three taikonauts at work in the near-complete space station Tiangong, or Heavenly Palace, orbiting 400km (248 miles) above Earth, and a Chang’e rover launch to explore the dark side of the moon. China has put a Tianwen (Questions to Heaven) rover on... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3164182/us-lack-space-cooperation-china-dangerous-and-counterproductive?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3164182/us-lack-space-cooperation-china-dangerous-and-counterproductive?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 21 Jan 2022 19:30:14 +0000