Prince William slammed Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos' space tourism initiatives and urged them to instead "repair the Earth."
When the Duke of Cambridge declared he had "absolutely no interest" in travelling to space and mentioned the carbon cost of space travel, he sparked an unusual controversy.
His comments to the BBC come only a day after William Shatner, the original Star Trek actor, became the world's oldest space traveler aboard Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket at the age of 90.
Prince William says he doesn't have interest in space tourism
After his own journey in the suborbital rocket in July, Bezos said that exploring space travel may lead to answers for climate change. Elon Musk's SpaceX is working on a reusable spaceship with the goal of transporting humans to Mars.
The Duke talked to the BBC to promote his Earthshot Prize, which will be presented for the first time on Sunday, October 17, Newsweek via MSN reported.
Prince William and Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, will attend the first Earthshot Awards on Sunday, when five winners will receive $1 million in financing to save the world.
Last October, Prince William announced the Earthshot Prize, which is patterned after former US President John F. Kennedy's iconic moonshot challenge. Each of the five winners will get $1 million every year until 2030, as per the ABC News.
The objective of William's $50 million initiative, according to Kensington Palace, is to find at least 50 solutions to the world's largest environmental issues by 2030.
Prince William also expressed his concern that Prince George, the third in line to the throne, may still be discussing climate change in 30 years, when it "will be too late."
Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attend Generation Earthshot event
The Duchess was joined by Prince William at an Earthshot event to inspire the youth to come up with ideas to help rescue the world. The royal couple attended a Generation Earthshot event with students from the Heathlands School in Hounslow at Kew Gardens in London.
Kate Middleton donned a vibrant green coat and top with black wide-leg trousers, while Prince William matched her with a blue suit. Kate's green dress options have stirred discussion among royal admirers, with many expecting her to choose an old gown.
The Prince launched the Earthshot Prize with five categories: Protect and Restore Nature, Build a Waste-Free World, Clean Our Air, Revive Our Oceans, and Fix Our Climate, to "incentivize change and aid in the restoration of our world during the next 10 years."
"The Earth is at a tipping point, and we confront a clear choice: either we continue as we are and irreversibly destroy our world, or we recall our unique strength as human beings and our ongoing capacity to lead, create, and problem-solve," Prince William said in a statement, Express.co reported.
The Royal Foundation and Prince William worked on the project for two years. The idea was developed during the prince's 2018 tour to Namibia, Tanzania, and Kenya, where he met conservationists.
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