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President Droupadi Murmu on Friday voiced concern over increasing <keyword id="20715750" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="space-debris" source="keywords">space debris</keyword> as a result of numerous satellites being placed in orbit and lauded <keyword id="19915124" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ISRO" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="ISRO" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="ISRO">ISRO</keyword> for setting itself a target to make future <keyword id="20018231" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="space-missions" source="keywords">space missions</keyword> debris free by 2030. Murmu was speaking at the celebration of the maiden <keyword id="22301946" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="National-Space-Day" source="keywords">National Space Day</keyword> celebrations to mark the first anniversary of the landing of India's Chandrayaan-3 project. "Space debris can cause problems for space missions," she said during the event at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi that was attended by Union minister Jitendra Singh, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman S Somanath, engineers, ISRO scientists and representatives of the country's nascent space industry. The president appreciated the ISRO System for Safe &amp; Sustainable Operations Management facility, which ensures continuous progress of space research activities. "I am also happy to note that India is moving forward to make all its space missions debris free by 2030," Murmu said. The president presented awards to winners of the Robotics Challenge and the Bharatiya Antariksh Hackathon on the occasion. The president said ISRO had made remarkable achievements in the space sector as well as invaluable contributions to the country's social and economic development. She appreciated the dedicated scientists who placed India's space programme among the best in the world by using minimum resources. Murmu also expressed confidence that the country would make continuous progress in space science and continue to set new standards of excellence. The president said the progress of India's space sector was extraordinary. "Be it a successfully completed Mars mission with limited resources or the successful launch of more than a hundred satellites at once, we have made many impressive achievements," Murmu said. The president said space exploration had increased the capabilities of human beings and transformed imagination into reality. "But space exploration is a challenging task. Research conducted to solve the problems during space exploration accelerates the development of science and improves human life," she said. The president said many sectors, including health and medicine, transportation, security, energy, environment and information technology, had benefited from developments in the space sector. The president pointed out that with the opening of the space sector to private entities, the number of start-ups had increased at a very rapid pace. "This has not only brought progress in space research but also given new opportunities to our youth to showcase and hone their talents," Murmu said. The president said she was happy to note that just a few months ago, an Indian company successfully launched a single-piece 3D-printed semi-cryogenic engine-powered rocket, the first such achievement. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/webstories/2024-tvs-jupiter-vs-honda-activa-6g-which-110cc-scooter-should-you-buy/slidelist/112730069.cms">2024 TVS Jupiter vs Honda Activa 6G – which 110cc scooter should you buy?</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/how-to/how-to-add-music-to-instagram-profile/articleshow/112732934.cms">You can now add music to your Instagram profile – here's how</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/audi-q8-facelift-launched-in-india-with-a-1-17-crore-price-tag/slidelist/112707701.cms">Audi Q8 facelift launched in India with a ₹1.17 crore price tag</a>

President Murmu voices concern over increasing space debris

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Much of the office market may be mired in a downturn, but demand has been strong for high-end space.</li><li>New office construction has dropped off sharply, leading to a potential upcoming shortage.</li></ul>Office vacancy is at a record high in Washington, DC, and the city is regarded as one of the nation's <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/the-federal-government-is-cutting-back-its-office-footprint-2023-6">most challenged</a> markets – in part because of its heavy reliance on federal tenants that have continued to slim down their spaces.Yet Hilary Goldfarb, a senior managing director at Rockefeller Development who leads the company's Washington, DC, operations, has little doubt about the sleek 400,000-square-foot office property her firm is raising at 600 Fifth St.When the building is completed in mid-2026, Goldfarb says she is "confident it will be full.""This is not hope as a strategy," she added, noting that half of the project was pre-leased to the law firm Crowell &amp; Morning. "It's based on real data and real activity."Across the country, major office markets from New York to San Francisco have been pummeled by the lasting popularity of remote and hybrid work. Newly built, high-end offices, however, are finding takers.That demand has persisted even as office construction has been stifled by higher interest rates and inflation, which have pushed up costs. Worries over the health of the office market have also made lenders reluctant to finance new development.About 30 million square feet of new office space will be completed this year in the US, roughly half of what was built in 2019, before the pandemic, says CBRE, the real estate services firm. In 2025, deliveries will fall even further, to 14 million square feet, CBRE projects.While the overall office market is awash in hundreds of millions of square feet of empty space, CBRE predicts that vacancy in the market's upper segment will drop to pre-pandemic levels by 2027 – around the same time projects that are breaking ground now will be ready.A growing number of office developers have taken notice and see a budding shortage they are eager to cater to. Large office tenants, who often plan their space decisions years in advance, have also begun to recognize that while space options may abound now, they are likely to vanish in the coming years – raising interest in new development."The last six, seven months, there's not just people coming kicking the tires, there's people that are really looking to engage," said Scott Rechler, the CEO of RXR Realty, referring to what he says is growing tenant interest in 175 Park Ave., a 2.8-million-square-foot skyscraper designed by Skidmore, Owings &amp; Merrill that developers RXR and TF Cornerstone are planning next to Grand Central Terminal in midtown Manhattan.The group now aims to begin construction on the more than $4 billion, 1,575-foot-tall tower midway through 2025 and with significantly less pre-leasing than originally planned because of their growing confidence in demand. Asking rents at the tower will be above $200 per square foot, among the highest ever sought in the city."There used to be a point where we thought we would need to pre-lease all of it," Rechler said. "Now, we think that at 500,000 feet, it's probably enough to get going."Rechler said that interest in elite new space had been stoked by other high-end offerings in the market, such as One Vanderbilt, a recently built nearby tower, JPMorgan's new headquarters at <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jpmorgan-nyc-headquarters-design-270-park-avenue-request-proposals-2021-4">270 Park Ave.</a>, and a planned skyscraper at 350 Park Ave. that will house the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ken-griffin-citadel-office-space-real-estate-fifth-avenue-2024-8">investment firm Citadel</a>."If your competitors have a building like that that they're identified with and you're trying to be on a parallel path, you're going to say I want to be in a space at the same level or better," Rechler said.<div type="image" title="Large conference room and office space overlooking Midtown Manhattan." height="1852" width="5000" msid="113908775" hostid="261" sizebytes="387772"></div><h2 id="5d3faa99-284e-4185-804a-807a2344cd11">Other developers are laying plans for new towers</h2>The large development firm Related Companies, meanwhile, says that four office towers it has built with Oxford Properties as part of their Hudson Yards mega-project, are now 99% full. The team is readying to begin a new 45-story, 1.1-million-square-foot office property called 70 Hudson Yards next year."We think we're going to be one of the only new buildings in '27, '28 when there's going to be no new supply," Philippe Visser, Related's president of office development, said.Even as overall office vacancy is now at 15.1% in Manhattan, according to CBRE, Visser sees little competition between the overwhelming majority of that empty space and Hudson Yards, where a number of major corporate names have migrated in recent years to take occupancy of newly built buildings. Tenants include Wells Fargo, KKR, BlackRock, Meta, and L'Oréal."All these successful companies who are looking for really dynamic office space want new construction," Visser said.70 Hudson Yards will feature an array of state-of-the-art features, including a triple-paned glass facade, which greatly enhances the insulating properties of glass exteriors and will make the building more energy efficient and appealing to sustainability-conscious office users.In Lower Manhattan, Larry Silverstein hinted that he is close to moving ahead with plans to erect the final office skyscraper at the World Trade Center, a 2.8 million-square-foot tower designed by architect Norman Foster.Rumors abound that Silverstein is close to signing a large lease with American Express that would allow the project to proceed."Just stay tuned" was all Silverstein would say about the possible deal at the tower, 2 World Trade Center.Silverstein said he was certain other tenants would fill up the remainder of the building's available space once construction is underway."When you put everything this buildings has all together, it's superior," Silverstein said. "It never left my mind that someday we would succeed in accomplishing Tower 2 – and that's where we are today."Manhattan is particularly conducive to new construction in that it has both a large captive audience of corporate office users and a deep inventory of old, outdated office properties that have fallen out of favor.But because there is so little office construction on the horizon nationally, builders have begun to lay similar plans in other markets with similar dynamics.Visser, for instance, says Related expects to break ground on a new 40-story, 925,000-square-foot office tower at 725 W. Randolph St. in Chicago by next year.Although that city is also awash in available space, the building would be one of the only available newly built office properties in the Fulton Market neighborhood, a desirable sub-district in the city's West Loop that is known for its retail and restaurants, he said.Related Ross, a spinoff development firm launched earlier this year by Related's founder, Stephen Ross, is about to begin construction on 15 City Place, a nearly 500,000-square-foot office building in West Palm Beach, Florida. The project is about 70% pre-leased to an undisclosed roster of tenants, according to Jordan Rathlev, a senior vice president of development at the company.Rathlev said he recently received a space inquiry from a financial technology firm that is seeking at least 300,000 square feet – far more than 15 City Place can accommodate. The interest from that tenant and others has given a boost to the company's ambitions to begin building a neighboring office property called 10 City Place that will also be around 500,000 square feet in size."The intent is that they're both going at the same time," Rathlev said, indicating Related's hope that it will sign enough anchor tenancy at 10 City Place to build it and 15 City Place simultaneously.<h2 id="70c57a95-0968-4007-a21d-96efb55c9ff3">A tale of two office markets</h2>There is a yawning gap between the health of top tier office space and the wider market, according to data from CBRE.The firm labels new and heavily renovated spaces that meet a host of quality measures as "prime" – a segment that encompasses only 8% of overall office inventory nationally.A net total of 49.3 million square feet of prime space was absorbed between 2020 and the first quarter of 2024, according to CBRE. Around 170.3 million square feet of net vacancy accrued in the rest of the office market during that same period.Overall office vacancy nationally was 19.1% in June, close to a record level. Prime vacancy was 15.5% and CBRE forecasts that figure will drop by almost half, to 8.2% by 2027, its pre-pandemic average."We believe that this absorption estimate is conservative, and the prime vacancy rate could return to its pre-pandemic level sooner given continued job growth," Jessica Morin, CBRE's director of US office research, said.These top-of-the-market spaces, which charged a 60% premium before the pandemic, are now 84% more expensive than competing spaces.With little supply, that differential could grow."8.2% is a healthy prime market and we expect rent growth in this tranche," Morin said.Driving the solid metrics is a lack of new supply.While a total of 44 million square feet of office space is presently under construction, only about 17.3 million square feet of it, 39% of the total, is considered prime, according to CBRE. 8 million square feet of that is pre-leased, meaning that there is only about 10 million square feet of upcoming available top quality space.<h2 id="ccbe14d6-6f15-40b7-b453-f934e9df0594">Financing remains a sticking point</h2>Even with the tailwinds, financing high end office construction remains a challenge. Banks have grown wary of lending to office projects, even those that are likely to be a financial success, because of broader concerns around declining values, increased foreclosures, and potential financial losses in the sector.Rechler said that RXR was considering "alternative strategies" to arrange financing for 175 Park Ave., as a result."The scale of this project is of a level, I'm not sure you'd be able to get enough traditional banks, as an example, to be a lender," Rechler said.Rechler said RXR has explored other routes to arrange the billions of dollars of debt necessary to fund 175 Park Ave.'s construction, including the municipal bond market, in part because the project includes $500 million of transit upgrades to Grand Central Terminal."I feel good," Rechler said, "that we'll have the right combination of pre-leasing and financing to begin next year."

What office meltdown? Developers see a shortage of high-end space and are rushing to build it. 

<ul class="summary-list"><li>On a recent trip to Lazarus Island, a Southern Island in Singapore, I stayed in a 139-square-foot home.</li><li>I spent $290 on the one-night stay at Tiny Away, one of two accommodations available on the island.</li></ul>Growing up in <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/everything-you-need-to-know-about-traveling-to-singapore">Singapore</a>, I thought I'd <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/things-to-do-in-singapore-best-activities">seen most of my country</a> — a city-state just slightly smaller than the size of New York City.But after a 20-minute ferry ride to Lazarus Island, one of the eight Southern Islands in Singapore, I felt like I was in another country.The island, which is just 47 hectares big, has one convenience store, a water sports center, and two accommodations. That's it.During my three-day visit in August, I stayed at a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/couple-lives-in-tiny-home-on-wheels-with-office-bedroom-2023-6">tiny home</a> by <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://escapeatlazarus.com/">Tiny Away</a> for one night.Launched by a Singaporean tiny home startup, Big Tiny, in May last year, Tiny Away features five tiny houses that measure around 139 square feet each — or slightly smaller than an average parking space.Adrian Chia, the cofounder of Big Tiny, told me that Tiny Away aims to provide guests with the opportunity to stay in unique accommodations while being close to nature."Being close to nature doesn't mean you have to rough it out. You can have hotel-like amenities and facilities during the stay," he said.The homes are also fitted with sustainable features. They are made with eco-friendly materials, mainly powered by solar panels, and include a compost bin.After cleaning fees and tax, the stay costs 380 Singapore dollars, or around $290 a night — comparable to the rates of some 5-star hotels on <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/photos-singapore-sentosa-island-former-pirate-haven-turned-vacation-spot-2023-5">Sentosa</a>, Singapore's nearby island resort.<h2 id="daf0521d-0ce0-41c9-a93b-94588134d6e9">The home felt spacious despite its small size.</h2><div type="image" title="The interior of a tiny home." height="2268" width="3024" msid="113177643" hostid="261" sizebytes="464370"></div>When I arrived, I was impressed that so much could <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-build-own-tiny-home-company-plans-2023-4#one-of-the-most-popular-plans-is-for-the-tiny-living-design-5">fit into a 139-square-foot home</a>.The home didn't feel claustrophobic, thanks to the floor-to-ceiling windows, which provided a view of the Singapore Strait. With air conditioning, guests can feel connected to nature while being sheltered from Singapore's humid climate. It was 89 degrees outside during my stay.The room included a queen-sized bed, a sofa bed, a small kitchenette fitted with a microwave, and a sizable bathroom.<div type="image" title="A bathroom in the tiny house" height="2966" width="4021" msid="113177645" hostid="261" sizebytes="285524"></div>Each home on Tiny Away has a theme based on a time period, and the room I selected was 1980s-inspired. It featured mid-century furniture and retro decorations, like vinyl records from the '80s as wall art. These decorations added a sense of novelty to the otherwise bare interior."We wanted to showcase to guests that each tiny house can have its own unique character," Chia said when I asked about the rationale behind the theme in early August. Different eras of Singapore's growth are represented in each home, he added. Besides the retro 1980s home, there is a 1900 home, which resembles a traditional black and white colonial house, and a 2017 home.<div type="image" title="The kitchenette of a tiny house" height="4896" width="3264" msid="113177642" hostid="261" sizebytes="645034"></div>But as I settled into the space, I spotted a mosquito buzzing around. As soon as I smacked it away, I spotted another zipping around the room.They were everywhere. When I stepped outside, my legs became an all-you-can-eat buffet for mosquitoes. As a result, I spent most of the afternoon indoors.Thankfully, the space inside was comfortable. It was also clear that the staff had tried to alleviate the mosquito situation by providing a can of insect repellent and a small portable bug zapper — which, unfortunately, was not entirely helpful.Still, I knew I was defeating the purpose of the stay by being cooped up. After dousing myself with insect repellent, I took a short stroll to Lazarus Beach, which was only a three-minute walk away.<h2 id="63fce095-b274-48c6-93ea-4f8ef659b294">Although it was a weekday, all five homes were booked</h2><div type="image" title="Two women walk their dog at Lazarus Island" height="3115" width="4527" msid="113177638" hostid="261" sizebytes="623162"></div>While walking to the beach, I met other guests — a couple with their cavalier and their friend, who brought her cocker spaniel. The group had booked two homes to celebrate the cavalier's birthday.The cocker spaniel's owner, who is in her 30s and works in banking, said the accommodation was spacious enough for her and her dog."The concept of this place is to unplug from busy life and be close to nature. It's a good message. The way the unit is placed, you can constantly be looking out at nature," she said.And although every room has a TV with a Netflix subscription, she tried not to watch it. Instead, she brought a book. "I'll try not to think about work," she said.Across from my home, there was a family with two young boys. While swatting mosquitoes away, the father, a doctor in his late 30s, told me he had learned about the accommodation through local media. As the place was popular, he had to book it months in advance.He enjoyed the island's peacefulness and said the beach was kid-friendly, with gentle waves and fine sand. Still, he felt that the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/built-tiny-house-parents-backyard-rent-free-saved-money-2024-3">tiny home</a> was too small for his family of four."I'll definitely be back again with my wife, hopefully when our parents can take care of the kids," he said.<h2 id="980fead2-07e2-4d39-8298-745428d83661">Word to the wise: There are very limited food options on the island</h2>The island has a convenience store, but it's closed on weekdays. Guests can preorder ready-to-eat microwave meals for $6 — which I selected — or bring their own food.But when night fell, my food had not arrived. After contacting customer service, I learned that the staff had forgotten about my meal and had headed back to the mainland at 6 p.m.Luckily, each room was stocked with snacks and instant noodles. As I poured hot water into my chicken-flavored cup noodles, I felt a world away from being on the mainland, where you can find food options at any hour and have them delivered within minutes.<h2 id="274f9391-d1aa-4541-950a-0162c91e87c0">I woke up to the clucks of a common house gecko and birds chirping in the distance</h2>I intended to spend my morning exploring more of the island.But this time, it was not mosquitoes that kept me in. Dark clouds loomed over the tiny homes, and soon, there was a heavy downpour.By the time the sky cleared, it was 11 a.m., and it was almost time to check out.<h2 id="62dab43c-2218-4380-a618-0a194ee353f9">Staying in the tiny home allowed me to recharge</h2><div type="image" title="Girl sitting on a sofa" height="2874" width="4311" msid="113177644" hostid="261" sizebytes="402282"></div><a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/millennial-city-life-quits-job-build-tiny-house-wood-denmark-2024-9">Living in tiny houses</a> spurred a movement promoting minimal living and sustainability called the tiny-house movement. Although the trend has taken off in <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiny-house-movement-future-2021-1">countries like the US</a>, it's new to Singapore, with Tiny Away being the only option for those who want to try tiny house living without going abroad.Prudence Lai, a consultant from market research firm Euromonitor, said that travelers have become more experientially driven after the pandemic and now seek authentic local experiences instead of just spending on tangible goods.The desire to seek out unique accommodations is reflected in the demand for Tiny Away. Since its inception, Tiny Away has run at an average of 90% occupancy, Chia said, adding that most guests are local.Chia said that many guests had not been aware of how peaceful it was to stay on Lazarus. "They always enjoy the fact that it allows them to leave their phones and laptops behind and recharge themselves," he said.I felt the same. Although WiFi was available in the rooms, the connection was unstable. I didn't need it anyway, as I found myself enjoying the view of the sea and the forest in the distance instead of checking my phone for notifications, as I usually do at home.Given its premium price tag and the range of similarly priced luxury hotel options across Singapore, I wouldn't go back. But Tiny Away could be ideal for guests looking for some solitude or a chance to experience the city-state minus all the high rises. Just be ready to fend off mosquitoes at the doorway and pack some extra food.Business Insider covered the cost of the author's stay.

I stayed in a $290-a-night tiny home on an island 5 miles from Singapore. It was smaller than a parking space.

The <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/power-players-commercial-space-startup-leaders-industry-virgin-galactic-relativity-2022-4">commercial space industry</a> has boomed in recent years, with companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin leading the pack.Their respective founders, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tesla-science-fiction-nasa-colonize-colony-planets-solar-system-2021-6">Elon Musk</a> and <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-blue-origin-stepping-down-amazon-ceo-space-2021-2">Jeff Bezos</a>, essentially share the same dream: to expand humanity's reach and build human settlements beyond Earth.But they each have different ideas of how to get us there.<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mars-colonization-human-survival-radiation-food-biosphere-2018-4">Musk has his sights on Mars</a>, saying he wants to establish a permanent, self-sustaining human colony of one million people on the red planet by 2050. SpaceX is helping him toward that goal.Meanwhile, Bezos wants to build enormous space stations that would allow <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-solar-system-mozart-einstein-37-000-serial-killers-2023-12">a trillion humans to live throughout the solar system</a>. Though he's said he won't see them built in his lifetime, Bezos founded Blue Origin for the purpose of making his vision come to life.Both billionaires' aspirations come with major <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gaping-holes-elon-musk-and-jeff-bezos-space-plans-2019-7">technical, scientific, and ethical hurdles.</a> But according to experts in architecture, astrobiology, artificial gravity, and reproductive health, one vision is more realistic.<h2 id="d8efbcdf-65d0-4782-ab2d-8d2830ccaf1a">Construction</h2><div type="image" title="Collage with a Martian city on the top and an O'Neill cylinder on the bottom." height="1080" width="1440" msid="112109338" hostid="261" sizebytes="187956"></div>Establishing habitats where humans can not only live, but thrive, is the biggest challenge in both billionaires' visions.If you ask independent architect Anthony Longman which world is more feasible to build, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-plan-colonize-space-experts-say-2024-6">Bezos' space stations</a> are the way to go in the long-run because you can make them Earth-like more easily than an entire planet.Musk's long-term vision is to <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nasa-just-quashed-elon-musks-plans-to-make-mars-habitable-for-humans-2018-7">terraform Mars</a> by giving it a thicker atmosphere with breathable oxygen and a protective magnetic field to shield from harmful space radiation, so that one day humans could live on and explore Mars's surface like on Earth.Longman thinks transforming an entire planet is too challenging, which is why he says <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/obama-protect-earth-colonizing-mars-starship-launch-musk-bezos-space-2024-3">colonizing Mars</a> is "not a good idea." Bezos' space stations could be built to resemble Earth more easily — no massive terraforming necessary.The scale Bezos envisions for these space stations, however, is unlike anything ever built. They would resemble a '70s concept called <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-reveals-blue-origin-future-space-plans-2019-5">O'Neill colonies</a> — enormous cylinders measuring 20 miles long and four miles wide that could hold a million people.Longman has his own concept for <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nasa-deep-space-habitat-plan-2015-12">space habitats</a> designed to house just 8,000 people. While he thinks that building a massive station like what Bezos imagines is more realistic, it's too big to be feasible near-term."I'm not saying they won't be built, but I think it will probably be some hundreds of years before we're able to build anything at that scale," Longman said.With that said, Bezos is still the winner of this round.Score: Bezos 1, Musk 0.<h2 id="649e0bf2-a7fd-49ae-87b9-49f6e33dd6c4">Food and agriculture</h2><div type="image" title="plants in space" height="2848" width="4288" msid="112109346" hostid="261" sizebytes="472742"></div>Aside from shelter, having enough food is crucial. But <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nasa-astronauts-share-successful-harvest-of-fresh-vegetables-2021-4">growing food off-world</a> is challenging since crops have evolved in Earth's conditions.Scientists have already <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nasa-astronauts-growing-chile-peppers-space-station-crew-diet-2021-7">grown a few crops on the International Space Station</a>, including tomatoes and lettuce. But scaling up production to feed millions requires more research, astrobiologist Rebeca Gonçalves told BI."We need to develop these very safe, closed-loop, self-sufficient agricultural systems," Gonçalves said. She thinks this will be easier on Mars than in space.That's because a planet already has a surface where humans can grow food, she said. In space, you'd have to build farms from scratch, and likely need to venture out to <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/billionaires-companies-going-to-space-need-rules-2024-3">mine water and minerals from asteroids</a>. Mars, on the other hand, has soil and water ice on its surface.The challenge on Mars will be developing an agricultural system that can sustain crops in Martian conditions.Researchers have already made progress toward that goal, successfully growing food in lunar regolith, and Gonçalves is working to develop a closed-loop, self-sustaining agricultural system for Martian colonies."If I had to pick a billionaire's vision of the future, I would definitely go with Elon Musk's Martian colony," Gonçalves told BI.Score: Bezos 1, Musk 1.<h2 id="615f77df-473f-4090-ae8a-9bdca4def00d">Artificial gravity</h2><div type="image" title="zero gravity" height="851" width="1280" msid="112109353" hostid="261" sizebytes="111628"></div>The human body has evolved to exist in Earth gravity and doesn't adapt too well to low or zero gravity. <a target="_blank" href="https://affiliate.insider.com?h=107755f559d855eb49ae0cbf666982cd593b6b8ba9342b0336d9ace323b517be&amp;postID=66a156c9d290cb433ad22a22&amp;postSlug=elon-musk-mars-colonies-vs-jeff-bezos-space-station-realistic-2024-7&amp;site=bi&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nature.com%2Farticles%2Fs41526-022-00194-8">Researchers have found</a> that spending weeks to months in space can lead to muscle and bone loss, vision problems, and even kidney stones.That means a space or Mars colony would need <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/space-tourism-microgravity-effects-damage-body-blue-origin-virgin-galactic-2021-5">artificial gravity</a> to keep residents healthy. Mars has some built-in gravity already — about 38% of what we experience on Earth. But a space station would need to start from scratch.That's why Rachael Seidler thinks Musk's <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mars-map-show-where-humans-will-live-on-mars-2018-3">Martian cities</a> are a better bet than Bezos' space stations. Reaching Earth-like gravity on Mars might be easier since it's already over a third of the way there."Artificial gravity is thought to be very difficult to implement in space," Seidler, a professor of applied physiology and kinesiology at the University of Florida who studies astronauts, told BI.Bezos' enormous 20-mile-long stations would rotate to simulate Earth's gravity. But getting that sort of goliath up and running is too far-fetched for Seidler.Scientists are already looking into <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://space.innovationkyoto.org/2022/07/14/kyoto_kajima_pressrelease/?lang=en">building artificial gravity</a> on places like Mars.So, Musk wins this round.Score: Bezos 1, Musk 2.<h2 id="895473e5-3866-416c-ad64-6957935f3c80">Category 4: Human reproduction</h2><div type="image" title="Human fetus at 7 months, computer illustration" height="1499" width="1999" msid="112109342" hostid="261" sizebytes="36466"></div>If we're going to establish a longstanding colony off world, reproduction will be necessary.A Russian experiment in <a target="_blank" href="https://www.wired.com/2007/10/cockroach-birth/">2007</a> showed us that giving birth and <a target="_blank" class="" href=" https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-denies-volunteering-sperm-to-start-a-martian-colony-2024-7">conceiving in space</a> is at least possible after a cockroach named Hope birthed 33 baby roaches and one of those roaches later conceived during the mission.However, cockroaches aren't humans, and a lot of questions remain around how <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/space-tourists-sex-pregnancy-risk-2023-8">space radiation and low gravity would affect a developing fetus</a> since we've never sent a pregnant person to space, and likely won't for a long time given the potential risks.Even here on Earth in fully-equipped hospitals, giving birth can be dangerous.So, both Musk's Martian colony and Bezos' space stations would have to be equipped with healthcare systems identical to those on Earth, if not better, said Adam Watkins, a professor of reproductive biology at the University of Nottingham.It's not clear to Watkins whether space stations or Mars cities would be a better place for giving birth — they may both come with equal risk. But Watkins thinks it's likely that Musk would achieve <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/humans-gave-birth-space-earth-giant-alien-heads-2019-7">off-world human reproduction</a> before Bezos since Musk is already working on establishing his space colony before the end of this century."I think establishment of human colonies on Mars is more likely to occur before we have significant human colonies established on large structures in space," he said later in an email to BI.Score: Bezos 1, Musk 3.<h2 id="de680355-a723-463f-9935-43bc69adaca3">The winner is: Musk's Martian Colony</h2><div type="image" title="Elon Musk cheering with his arms in the air." height="791" width="1024" msid="112109350" hostid="261" sizebytes="29000"></div>The majority of experts BI spoke with agreed that Musk's Martian colony is more feasible than Bezos' enormous space stations.But neither of these billionaires are anywhere close to making these dreams a reality. It will take decades — if not centuries — of innovation to build the technology that would allow humans to live safely beyond Earth.<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/barack-obama-jeff-bezos-space-exploration-colonization-save-earth-2024-3">Should we instead focus on caring for our home planet</a>? Is it worth the billions of dollars we'll spend to get there? Will humans really want to leave Earth? The experts BI spoke with raised all these questions and more.But if you ask Musk and Bezos, colonizing space is humanity's destiny. Through <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/spacex-build-superpowered-dragon-spaceship-scrap-nasa-space-station-2024-7">SpaceX</a> and <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-blue-origin-faa-spacex-starship-super-heavy-launches-2024-6">Blue Origin</a>, they're laying the groundwork for our great expansion.

We put Elon Musk's dream to colonize Mars up against Jeff Bezos' vision of living in space — and one is more realistic

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Jeff Bezos dreams of a trillion people living throughout the solar system on <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-proposes-floating-colonies-with-weather-as-good-as-maui-2019-5#:~:text=Bezos%20said%20he%20envisioned%20some,some%20way%2C%22%20he%20said.&amp;text=Some%20of%20them%20might%20even,%22these%20are%20ideal%20climates.%22">gigantic space stations</a>.</li><li>This is how humanity can thrive without robbing planet Earth of precious resources, in the process, according to Bezos.</li></ul>When it comes to space exploration, Jeff Bezos dreams big."I would love to see <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-solar-system-mozart-einstein-37-000-serial-killers-2023-12">a trillion humans living in the solar system</a>. If we had a trillion humans, we would have, at any given time, 1,000 Mozarts and 1,000 Einsteins," he told podcaster Lex Fridman in a 2023 interview.To realize this dream, Bezos envisions a future beyond his lifetime where humans live on <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-build-an-elysium-space-station-2013-8">giant space colonies</a> floating through our solar system, not on planets like Mars. "The planetary surfaces are just way too small," to fit everyone, Bezos told Fridman.According to Bezos, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/barack-obama-jeff-bezos-space-exploration-colonization-save-earth-2024-3">leaving Earth</a> would enable the human race to grow and thrive without destroying our home planet.Business Insider asked four different kinds of experts — from architects to astrobiologists — for their take on Bezos' plan. Here's what they said.<h2 id="6e928df4-a032-410e-a7b6-02486d7151d0">Jeff Bezos's space colonies would look like cylinders</h2><div type="image" title="blue moon lunar lander BlueOrigin_Colony One" height="1687" width="3000" msid="110977693" hostid="261" sizebytes="480320"></div>In Bezos' futuristic fantasy, we're all kicking back in space stations that look similar to a concept called <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-space-stations-elon-musk-mars-colonization-lex-fridman-2023-12">O'Neill cylinders</a>, named for physicist Gerard K. O'Neill, who first proposed them in the 1970s."The vision of Gerard K. O'Neill is inspiring, but it's absolutely humongous," said Anthony Longman, an independent architect who put together a concept for <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/space-station-getting-old-companies-making-new-versions-2020-11">space habitats</a> designed to house roughly <a target="_blank" href="https://www.skyframeresearch.com/">8,000 people</a>.That's notably larger than the International Space Station, which typically has seven astronauts on board at any given time.But a space habitat with 8,000 humans is nothing compared to O'Neill colonies that could house several million people and would be about 500 square miles, or as big as <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/cities-hiring-the-most-florida-texas-california-job-growth-tech-2024-4">San Antonio, TX</a>, inside.On the outside, these space colonies would measure 20 miles long, four miles wide, and rotate to generate <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/space-tourism-microgravity-effects-damage-body-blue-origin-virgin-galactic-2021-5">artificial gravity</a> for the humans onboard.O'Neill thought that we could establish natural ecosystems, bodies of water, and even weather systems inside. From there, we could build farms, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/darpa-futuristic-lunar-railroad-solutions-astronauts-living-moon-2024-3">transit systems</a>, and bustling cities.<div type="image" title="blue moon lunar lander BlueOrigin_Colony Four" height="1687" width="3000" msid="110977690" hostid="261" sizebytes="565360"></div>"I'm not saying they won't be built, but I think it will probably be some hundreds of years before we're able to build anything at that scale," Longman said of the O'Neill colonies.Bezos isn't suggesting that people will be living in O'Neill space colonies by the end of the century. Even so, that long-term vision is clearly shaping the present-day goals of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-space-travel-lifelong-obsession-blue-origin-flight-2021-6">Blue Origin</a>, and the commercial space race at large.Both Blue Origin and its biggest competitor in the commercial space industry, Elon Musk's SpaceX, are developing technologies that Bezos and Musk hope could, one day, shepherd people to new lives outside of Earth."I won't live long enough to see the fruits of this, but the fruits of this come from building a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-blue-origin-sold-100-million-space-tourism-tickets-2021-7">road to space</a>, getting the infrastructure," Bezos told Fridman.<h2 id="6db5d5a6-c990-4345-92b8-c8de00a64ce7">Challenges of keeping humans happy and healthy in space</h2><div type="image" title="blue moon lunar lander BlueOrigin_Colony Two" height="1687" width="3000" msid="110977695" hostid="261" sizebytes="353026"></div>There are many issues to address before we can live on giant space stations and colonize the solar system. But to keep it simple, let's start with the basics: food and reproduction.Researchers have <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nasa-astronauts-growing-chile-peppers-space-station-crew-diet-2021-7">grown a few crops on the International Space Station</a>, including tomatoes and lettuce. Although these veggies are grown in different conditions, they appear to be just as nutritious as ones grown on Earth, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2020.00199/full">research</a> shows.However, to achieve the scale of agricultural production necessary for an O'Neill colony, "we need to develop these very safe, closed-loop, self-sustainable agricultural systems," said Rebeca Gonçalves, an astrobiologist formerly at the European Space Agency whose research focuses on how we might grow crops off-world, like on Mars.<div type="image" title="plants in space" height="2848" width="4288" msid="110977692" hostid="261" sizebytes="472742"></div>As for <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/space-life-origin-suspending-operations-babies-in-space-2019-7">human reproduction in space</a>, Adam Watkins, associate professor of reproductive biology at the University of Nottingham, said we have a long way to go."<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/humans-gave-birth-space-earth-giant-alien-heads-2019-7">Giving birth in space</a> — you just don't even want to contemplate the logistics and the difficulties that might be associated with that, let alone if there are any complications associated with it," he said.As far as we know, no one has ever had <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/space-tourists-sex-pregnancy-risk-2023-8">sex in space</a>. And we've certainly never sent a pregnant person to space. The health risks are too high, Watkins said.Those risks stand in the way of research that could reveal how space radiation affects a developing fetus. So, scientists aren't sure what the impact would be.To eliminate those risks, space colonies would need <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-doctors-and-community-groups-are-promoting-health-equity-2023-11">healthcare systems</a> that are just as equipped to handle reproduction as Earth's are, Watkins said."It's one thing <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nasa-spacex-crew-dragon-falcon9-demo-2-timeline-launch-space-2020-5">getting people into space</a>, we can do that. That's fairly straightforward." Watkins said, adding that the hard part is "building those entire infrastructure communities where you've got those kinds of support structures in place, fully functioning, tried and tested, I think is a very long way off."<h2 id="c4d3a503-e410-4185-9ae9-5dd71aa0b6a5">Escaping Earth's problems may be a 'dangerous illusion'</h2><div type="image" title="&quot;Earthrise&quot; from the moon, taken in 1968." height="665" width="886" msid="110977689" hostid="261" sizebytes="14642"></div>Our industrialized presence on the planet is driving climate change, resource scarcity, and a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/biodiversity-loss-climate-change-linked-solutions-2023-4">biodiversity crisis</a>. Leaving Earth is a way for humanity to continue on its current path and preserve Earth in the process, according to Bezos."<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/most-least-toxic-countries-pollution-environment-2017-2">We want to use a lot of energy</a>. We want to use a lot of energy per capita. We've gotten amazing things. We don't want to go backward," he told Fridman.But Martin Rees, the United Kingdom's Astronomer Royal who advises the monarchy on astronomical matters, doesn't think that leaving Earth behind is the best option, he told Business Insider.Using space as an "escape for the problems we may cause with our own planet," is a "dangerous illusion," he said. "We should look after our own planet. It's the best we've got."<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/prince-william-says-focus-on-earth-not-space-tourism-2021-10">Saving Earth</a> would be far easier than building Bezos' space colonies, he told BI.Even if we never make it to space colonies, the work of researchers studying extraterrestrial colonization could benefit us here on Earth. For example, Gonçalves' research on <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-grow-crops-on-mars-2018-7">Martian agriculture</a> could help improve crop resiliency in degraded, sandy soils on our planet, she said."I don't think these O'Neill-type space colonies are going to be nearly as attractive to spend your life on as it is to be living on Earth with its wonderful variety," Rees said.

Jeff Bezos has a vision to colonize space with a trillion people. We asked experts to put it to the test.

<ul><li>Intuitive Machines soared as much as 259% on Wednesday in a move reminiscent of 2021's SPAC mania. </li><li>The space exploration company has soared as much as 1,260% since it completed its SPAC merger last week.</li><li>Intuitive Machines is developing different services for space exploration has already won contracts with NASA.</li></ul><a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/stocks/lunr-stock?miRedirects=1">Intuitive Machines</a> stock soared as much as 259% on Wednesday as investors rush into the space exploration company and revive their 2021 trading playbook.Since Intuitive Machines completed its $1 billion SPAC merger last week, the stock has soared as much as 1,260%. The surge in Intuitive Machines, which trades on the NASDAQ exchange under the ticker symbol "<a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/stocks/lunr-stock?miRedirects=1">LUNR</a>," <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/stock-market-trends-flipped-upside-down-investors-defy-fed-2023-2?_gl=1*1p2uhvw*_ga*MTkxNzQzNjc2Mi4xNjYxNDU2MDU1*_ga_E21CV80ZCZ*MTY3Njk5MDU4NS43NTguMS4xNjc2OTkxNDg5LjAuMC4w">continues a trend that began at the start of 2023,</a> in which some of the most speculative stocks have soared following a painful 2022.And to be sure, Intuitive Machines is a <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/stock-market-trends-flipped-upside-down-investors-defy-fed-2023-2?_gl=1*1p2uhvw*_ga*MTkxNzQzNjc2Mi4xNjYxNDU2MDU1*_ga_E21CV80ZCZ*MTY3Njk5MDU4NS43NTguMS4xNjc2OTkxNDg5LjAuMC4w">speculative stock.</a>While the company has already won contracts with NASA and estimates that it generated $88 million in revenue last year, it is far away from profitability and its vision is to establish "the lunar infrastructure and basis for commerce to inform and sustain human presence on another orbiting body," according to its <a href="https://investors.intuitivemachines.com/static-files/837a64fe-a778-4209-9239-313d77a3aa0f" target="_blank" rel="noopener">investor presentation.</a>Via contracted shuttle launches and various lunar data services, the company hopes to increase human exploration of the moon, an enterprise it believes one day will be highly profitable. Similar <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-do-spacs-work-get-created-costs-guide">to the frenzy for SPACs two years ago</a> that was accompanied by lofty financial guidance, Intuitive Machines is following suit with some big numbers it's targeting for future revenue. Guidance issued in September shows Intuitive Machines expects to triple its revenue in 2023 to $300 million, and then more than double that amount in 2024 to $759 million. That implies massive growth rates for various business units that have yet to generate any revenue for the company.Whether Intuitive Machines' stock price journey plays out <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/stock-market-outlook-spacs-blank-check-crash-bust-recession-downturn-2022-5">the same way other hyped-up SPAC stocks did in 2021 and 2022</a> remains to be seen, but Tuesday's pop is certainly reminiscent of the boom times SPACs enjoyed in 2021. Shares pared gains in Wednesday afternoon trades, falling 29% from its intra-day high of $136 to about $96. The stock started trading at $10 per share last week.

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