Elon Musk’s SpaceX reportedly has two people signed up for a trip around the Moon (although these plans have been delayed slightly), and Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic has advanced plans to launch space tourists from 2018 for a mere US$250,000 each – hundreds of people have already registered.

Is there anyone reading this who didn’t want to be an astronaut when they were a child? I was especially passionate, but it was back in the days when Australian women weren’t allowed to be military or commercial pilots, and we didn’t have a space program, so that was the end of that.

These days, having gained post-graduate qualifications in space studies and aviation medicine, I sustain my passion through my work as a medical educator, doctor and extreme environments researcher.

So, am I excited that we are edging closer to space tourism being a reality, and would I like to go? Yes, of course! (Assuming it was a lot more affordable). However, the child within is tempered by a rationalist voice saying “not until it is all proven and safely bedded down”.