Explorer will have the capacity to transport up to five people to space and is designed to optimize the customer experience of space travel, while maintaining the highest degree of safety.

Space Adventures has an exclusive partnership with the Russian aerospace team of Suborbital Corporation and the Myasishchev Design Bureau, with their Explorer sub-orbital space vehicle design. This team has a track record of successfully designing spacecraft, and will use an existing lifting aircraft and existing rocket engines as part of their design — to significantly reduce development time, cost, and risks. This team also incorporates advanced passenger safety features into its design.

Space Adventures recently announced a contract with Prodea, a private investment firm founded by the Ansari family, to support the development of the Explorer. The Ansari family sponsored the X-Prize sub-orbital space vehicle competition. Further, Space Adventures announced that it has an agreement with the Russian Federal Space Agency, which confirms FSA’s oversight and supervision in the development process of the Explorer.