Commerce in Space

Battlepanda posted this story about Russian plans to mine the moon: http://battlepanda.blogspot.com/2006/02/mining-moon.html

This is an exciting prospect. I think humans need to colonize space and I have been hoping that commercial opportunities would be discovered. Once there are mines on the moon, you will need all kinds of other businesses to support the operations and provide services and diversions for the miners.

I have a fantasy that when I am retired, Mrs Vache Folle and I will take a second honeymoon to an all-inclusive resort on the moon. It will be like Vegas but with low gravity. Lots of low gravity sports might be featured. Imagine what Cirque de Soleil could do in lunar gravity. People would pay plenty, I reckon, for such a vacation.

Even trips into Earth orbit would likely be a big seller. I imagine a Cunard orbiting cruise.

I have previously suggested that space would be ideal for nursing homes. Elderly folks with impaired mobility might find weightlessness or lunar gravity a boon.

There are bound to be manufacturing processes that zero gravity would facilitate, and the exploitation of minerals could drive a lot of exploration into the asteroid belt and beyond.