Virgin boss Richard Branson has vowed to "persevere and move forward together" with space tourism efforts after an explosion consumed Virgin Galactic’s test craft SpaceShipTwo in the skies above California’s Mojave Desert on Saturday. 

However, many people have dismissed Virgin’s ambitions to take paying customers into orbit as purely a pursuit for the rich and is too risky at present.

Others argue that such an audacious plan is important to mankind and will not only inspire a new generation of engineers but could eventually lower the cost of space access for all.

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