To address our three key research questions comprehensively, we derived insights from the textual and visual results. These findings provide a comprehensive understanding of the development trends, hot topics, and public attitudes about the space tourism sector. First, the analyses reveal two predominant trends: the increasing popularity of terrestrial space travel in China and the growing dominance of commercial space travel around the world. Second, hot topics include scientific concepts with science fiction, and strong support among the Chinese public for China’s space exploration initiatives. Third, in terms of public attitudes toward space tourism, the responses embraced both enthusiasm and thoughtful consideration. Negative perceptions are associated primarily with concerns about risk, cost, and potential harm, while positive outlooks are characterized by terms like “excitement, motivation, and support”.Development trendsThe first trend indicates that terrestrial space travel enjoys great popularity in China, targeting potential tourists. Terrestrial experiences such as visits to planetariums, observatories, and space-themed attractions or museums are highly populated in China. According to Pizam (2008), space-themed tourist attractions have existed for more than three decades. These attractions are designed as “staged-authentic” space-tourism products, offering an immersive experience that satisfies the curiosity and interest of individuals. With uncertain prospects about when outer space will be opened to the masses, developments in the space sector, including terrestrial-based experience programs, continue to attract extensive public interest (Frost and Frost, 2021). Therefore, terrestrial experiences related to space, which provide a highly popular alternative, are gaining prominence. These places allow individuals to engage with space-related activities and attractions on Earth, offering a taste of the space tourism experience before it becomes widely available to the masses.The second trend is the gradual dominance of commercial enterprises in this field worldwide. The growing involvement of the private sector in a previously government-dominated industry has been an inevitable trend (Paladini et al., 2021). In the era of the new space economy, space tourism has emerged as a novel frontier within the tourism industry, garnering the interest of diverse stakeholders (Khasawneh et al., 2024), with private corporations such as like SpaceX, now taking on more diverse roles associated with space travel (Weeks and Faiyetole, 2014). This shift has led to the emergence of a growing market for space tourism, with the potential for it to become more affordable and accessible to a larger public. Within this evolving landscape, numerous operators are competing for prominence. Among these, Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin in particular have achieved great prominence (Friel, 2020). These companies, owned by globally influential and wealthy visionaries, are actively exploring methods to make space tourism more possible (Gupta et al., 2023), promoting scientific research in space tourism and have achieved the pioneering status of being the world’s fully operational commercial space tourism companies (Reddy et al., 2012). Therefore, advancements in technology, human adaptability, and funding have increased space exploration and, in turn, commercial spaceflight.Hot topicsThe first hot topic among the public is scientific concepts and science fiction. The mysteries surrounding space, solar systems, and the universe are particularly popular and widely discussed on social media. These discussions encircled scientific works and concepts that captured the public’s attention. Space has always been intricately connected to the field of science, and its exploration offers intellectual stimulation that satisfies people’s curiosity (Weeks and Faiyetole, 2014). This curiosity is fueled by the desire to learn, explore, discover, create, and imagine. The public’s appreciation and praise for content related to these topics further underline the importance of leveraging the topic of space tourism to engage more consumers, particularly students, to learn about space-related knowledge and cultivate a broader base of space enthusiasts. This recognition serves as an inspiration for content creators and marketers to develop compelling and captivating material that caters to the interests and preferences of the audience. By understanding the public’s interest, content creators and marketers can leverage this knowledge to create engaging content that resonates with the target audience. This can lead to increased engagement, broader reach, and positive reception from the public.The second hot topic is the high support of Chinese people for China’s space exploration efforts. Among nations and regions worldwide, Chinese individuals exhibit remarkable enthusiasm for space tourism (Le Goff and Moreau, 2013). The frequent occurrence of keywords closely associated with China’s aerospace activities highlights the substantial interest of the Chinese public in the country’s accomplishments within space exploration. The populace regards these achievements as a manifestation of their nation’s global reputation and clout and as a source of national pride. For example, things about space stations are popularly discussed in China. The first human space station, ISS, represents an example of humankind’s efforts to make the space environment part of its domain (Masson-Zwaan and Freeland, 2010). Notably, China has successfully constructed its own space station, further fueling the interest and discussions surrounding this topic. This strong public support can serve as motivation for continued investment in the space sector, both by the government and private enterprises. It also presents opportunities for educational initiatives, public engagement, and the development of space-related industries in China.Public attitudesThe negative aspect can be succinctly summarized as a combination of “high risk, high cost, and potential damage”. High financial costs and perceived risk are recognized as the main uncertainties and constraints for potential consumers to face (Kim et al., 2023). In general, options for space tourism are often associated with high costs. For example, reaching the space station usually costs millions of dollars. With significant financial investment, the current offerings for space tourism constrain a larger population of individuals who aspire to partake in the ultimate joy ride (Spennemann, 2007), indicating a lower affordability for the public. Meanwhile, the public’s perception of risk entails safety risks, physical risks, and even ethnic problems. The perceived risk of danger to health and the environment may influence the purchase of a space travel product (Strickland, 2012; Sharmina et al., 2021). Thus, space tourism generally seems to attract individuals who are risk-takers and novelty seekers (Olya and Han, 2020). The significant increase in demand for space tourism necessitates an improved understanding of the possible impacts on human health and the environment.Positive aspects can be identified with words such as “excitement, motivation, and support”. Such positive attitudes can be summarized as “excitement”—excited by the progress of space exploration and technological advances. Excitement is truly the main driver of an increase in the number of people who will enjoy space travel (Le Goff and Moreau, 2013). Additionally, the strong sense of “motivation” is characterized by a longing and yearning for the extraordinary experience of space travel. The motivation for adventure is evident in people such as Charles Lindbergh, Richard Branson, and Dennis Tito (Crouch, 2001). Besides, there is extensive support for the pioneering efforts undertaken by governments and commercial enterprises in this domain. Currently, the development of space tourism is motivated by a cadre of individuals, companies, and governments with strategic visions and developmental objectives (Spector and Higham, 2019). The public holds a supportive attitude toward the development of this sector, and Chinese citizens exhibit a favor disposition toward this upcoming trend.The identified keywords collectively demonstrate that there is a significant public interest in space tourism as a distinctive and thrilling mode of travel, which is hindered by its affordability, accessibility, and potential environmental impact. Overall, the space community is eager to actively engage and involve the global community in the advancement of outer space (Weeks and Faiyetole, 2014).Zhang, C., Qin, Q., Zhao, B. et al. Insights into space tourism discourse on TikTok using a deep visual model and a text mining method: trends, topics, and public attitudes.
Humanit Soc Sci Commun 12, 622 (2025). bu içeriği en az 2500 kelime olacak şekilde ve alt başlıklar ve madde içermiyecek şekilde ünlü bir science magazine için İngilizce olarak yeniden yaz. Teknik açıklamalar içersin ve viral olacak şekilde İngilizce yaz. Haber dışında başka bir şey içermesin. Haber içerisinde en az 14 paragraf ve her bir paragrafta da en az 80 kelime olsun. Cevapta sadece haber olsun. Ayrıca haberi yazdıktan sonra içerikten yararlanarak aşağıdaki başlıkların bilgisi var ise haberin altında doldur. Eğer bilgi yoksa ilgili kısmı yazma.:
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Article References:Zhang, C., Qin, Q., Zhao, B. et al. Insights into space tourism discourse on TikTok using a deep visual model and a text mining method: trends, topics, and public attitudes.
Humanit Soc Sci Commun 12, 622 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-025-04936-3
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