We got in to a great discussion about what defines an astronaut in the Spacevidcast Live 3.01 post show. In fact it stirred quite the debate. I thought this to be a very good question, what does define an astronaut?

Of the slightly more than 500 humans we have sent to space, few would argue that all of them would be astronauts. In recent history we have started sending civilians to the International Space Station via Space Adventures. Even these people went though year long training and worked on station. In fact Richard Garriott even talks about how he had to remove part of his liver in order to be allowed to travel to the International Space Station. Check out this video from ISDC 2009 where Richard speaks not only about his liver surgery, but also a bit about being called or not called an astronaut:

If we’re already starting questioning the term ‘Astronaut’ for people who do huge amounts of training and work on the ISS but had to pay their way there, then what of the people who are flying aboard Virgin Galactic?

Right now space travel is expensive, complex and risky business. Anyone willing to fly to space on a private spaceliner is putting their money and life on the line. That’s not to say they are crazy for doing so, in fact I would assume that many of the people who watch Spacevidcast would do it in a heartbeat if they had the opportunity. But just because these people, you and I for example, don’t train for years or even work in space, does that not mean we’re not worthy of the title ‘Astronaut’?

Some would argue that a sub-orbital flight, while technically over the 100 km boundary of space, isn’t really space flight. Does that mean that Alan Shepard wasn’t an astronaut until Apollo 14? What does that mean to all of the Project Mercury flights? Maybe the difference is that in the 1960′s sub-orbital was a big deal and with Project Mercury the astronaut on-board was truly working. When it comes to a Virgin Galactic traveler, the travelers are really just there for the enjoyment of space.

But these first people helping to create a whole new industry are just as important to space travel as Yuri’s first mission. These people are putting their money and lives on the line to not only get to view space, but to also help push humanity forward. Do they not also deserve to be called ‘Astronauts’?

What about 30 years from now when space truly is commonplace. Or 50 or 100, whatever it takes. We don’t have a special term for anyone flying on an airplane. You’re just a traveler. It is just another method to get from point A to point B. Do we really need to call people who go to space ‘Astronauts’ or will it just be a term that falls by the wayside? When I go to space, and I will, what will I be called? A civilian astronaut? A space traveler? A fool? What do you think? What do we call the next generation space traveler who purchased their way in to space? Does it even matter?