<p>Scientists believe that vast amounts of black soot created by a new generation of spacecraft could lead to temperatures in polar regions rising by as much as one degree Celsius.<br /><br />Their simulations show that space flight would lead to polar surface temperatures by one degree Celsius, and a reduction in the polar sea ice by 5-15 percent, according to the journal Geophysical Research Letters1.<br /><br />The study suggest that emissions from 1,000 private rocket launches a year would travel high in the stratosphere, changing how ozone is circulated and produced, with dramatic consequences within just 10 years, reports the Daily Mail.<br /><br />The study comes as the dream of whisking tourists edged closer to reality with the official opening of the runway at the world's first commercial spaceport by Richard Branson. <br />The billionaire said he expects flights for space tourists to begin in nine to 18 months, and he will be among the first passengers.<br /><br />Scientists found that black soot from commercial space flight will dramatically change global temperatures because of the particular fuel they use for sub-orbital flight.Firms like Virgin Galactic plan on using a 'hybrid' rocket engine that ignites synthetic hydrocarbon with nitrous oxide. These hybrid engines emit much more black carbon than conventional commercial engines.<br /><br />And a layer of black carbon caused by commercial space flights caused the temperature to decrease about 0.4 degree Celsius in the tropics and subtropics.Study author Martin Ross said: "There are fundamental limits to how much material human beings can put into orbit without having a significant impact."</p>
<p>Scientists believe that vast amounts of black soot created by a new generation of spacecraft could lead to temperatures in polar regions rising by as much as one degree Celsius.<br /><br />Their simulations show that space flight would lead to polar surface temperatures by one degree Celsius, and a reduction in the polar sea ice by 5-15 percent, according to the journal Geophysical Research Letters1.<br /><br />The study suggest that emissions from 1,000 private rocket launches a year would travel high in the stratosphere, changing how ozone is circulated and produced, with dramatic consequences within just 10 years, reports the Daily Mail.<br /><br />The study comes as the dream of whisking tourists edged closer to reality with the official opening of the runway at the world's first commercial spaceport by Richard Branson. <br />The billionaire said he expects flights for space tourists to begin in nine to 18 months, and he will be among the first passengers.<br /><br />Scientists found that black soot from commercial space flight will dramatically change global temperatures because of the particular fuel they use for sub-orbital flight.Firms like Virgin Galactic plan on using a 'hybrid' rocket engine that ignites synthetic hydrocarbon with nitrous oxide. These hybrid engines emit much more black carbon than conventional commercial engines.<br /><br />And a layer of black carbon caused by commercial space flights caused the temperature to decrease about 0.4 degree Celsius in the tropics and subtropics.Study author Martin Ross said: "There are fundamental limits to how much material human beings can put into orbit without having a significant impact."</p>