Simonyi schedules second space sortie

Stephen Withers
Wednesday, 01 October 2008 06:06

Science - Space

When Simonyi first visited the ISS in 2007, he took a special Cosmonauts' Day dinner comprising a menu selected by his close friend Martha Stewart, who also watched from mission control outside Moscow as the Soyuz capsule docked with the ISS.

It's unlikely Stewart will take such a close interest in Simonyi's next trip, as he is now engaged to Lisa Persdotter with a wedding scheduled for November 22.

The first trip reportedly cost Simonyi $US25 million. Even if he spends even more on his second ride into space, the total is still likely to be less than Simonyi has spent supporting the arts, sciences and education.

"Having a repeat orbital client demonstrates to the world that participating in a space mission is truly a magnificent and awe-inspiring experience," said Eric Anderson, president and CEO of Space Adventures.

"It is also an excellent example that the marketplace is even larger than previously anticipated because of the potential occurrence of clients who fly on multiple occasions."

However, there may not be too many more opportunities in the near future to travel into space as part of a government-backed mission. Once the Space Shuttles are retired in 2010, all the seats on subsequent Soyuz missions will be needed for official crewmembers.

NASA's four-seat Orion spacecraft is not scheduled to fly to the ISS until 2014, ahead of a Moon mission in 2020.

Space Adventures' sixth client - Richard Garriott - is scheduled to leave Earth for the ISS on October 12.