Launching NASA astronauts to the International Space Station aboard commercial spaceships may have its risks, but the payoffs from lower-cost flights to the orbiting outpost, and expanded scientific use of the microgravity environment, are expected to be considerable, industry officials told lawmakers Wednesday.

William Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for NASA's Human Exploration Operations Directorate, testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation Subcommittee on Science and Space Wednesday morning to discuss the risks and opportunities associated with the burgeoning commercial spaceflight industry.

By supporting the development of new private spaceships, NASA will be able to buy flights to and from the space station with reduced cost and oversight.

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Science editor Alan Boyle's blog: The nonprofit B612 Foundation says it's planning the first privately funded deep-space mission, with the goal of launching an instrument known as the Sentinel Space Telescope to look for potentially hazardous asteroids.

"These two things are allowing NASA to focus its talents on the bigger goals: the utilization of the International Space Station and developing the next generation of hardware and skills that will allow us to extend human presence in the solar system beyond low-Earth orbit," Gerstenmaier said.

NASA is currently relying on Russian rockets and capsules to ferry American astronauts to and from the orbiting complex, but the agency is hoping to begin flights on homegrown commercial vehicles by 2017. [ Now Boarding: The Top 10 Private Spaceships ]

Gerstenmaier stressed that as these spacecraft undergo rigorous testing, there may be setbacks, and it is important for the government to understand the setbacks and not clamp down on the industry in ways that will stifle progress and innovation.

"We need to anticipate and not overreact to these problems," Gerstenmaier said. "These problems will occur and should not be viewed as a major failure."

The hearing included comments from Pamela Melroy, senior technical adviser in the Office of Commercial Space Transportation at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Gerald Dillingham, director of civil aviation issues at the U.S. Government Accountability Office, Michael Gold, director of D.C. operations and business growth at Bigelow Aerospace, and Michael Lopez-Alegria, president of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation.

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Private space travel's science benefits