10 minutes away from the Blue Origin space launch site in West Texas is the luxurious astronaut village.
“The launch site, near Van Horn in Texas, is what we would call ‘laid-back desert chic’, full of space-age caravans, campfires and outdoor BBQs.” Euro News.Travel described.
Each astronaut stays in a luxurious, futuristic looking Airstream fitted to look like the inside of a modern spaceship.
The village also includes a catering team, campfires, outdoor BBQs, and even Blue Origin specialty cocktails.
The purpose of the village is not for return to Earth, but so that the crew can get to know each other comfortably as they prepare for a flight into space.
This isn’t Airstream’s first foray into an astronaut partnership. Leading up to the first moon landing in the 1960’s, fears spread about astronauts returning to Earth with unknown space bacteria that could create disease outbreaks. Airstream then created Mobile Quarantine Facilities, chosen due to Airstream’s “aircraft-like” construction, that several Apollo space missions used after landing on Earth.
Nearly two decades later in 1983, NASA began using a modified Airstream motorhome called the Astrovan to transport astronauts from the Kennedy Space Center to the launch pad. The Astrovan was in use until 2011 when the astronaut program was largely discontinued.
Airstream enthusiasts can’t yet purchase tickets to stay in the Astronaut Village, but many are hoping such an experience will quickly come into orbit.
