Space Adventures, the company that takes people into space to visit the (International Space Station) ISS aboard Russian Soyuz TMA spacecraft, has just launched its sixth tourist into space: Richard Garriott.
The first launch was in 2001, taking Dennis Tito as the first space tourist, followed by four others, and now Garriott.
Having wanted to follow his father’s footsteps over the last 20-30 years and become the world’s first second-generation astronaut, Garriott has now accomplished his dream and is now on the way to the ISS.
Interestingly, Garriott’s father, Owen Garriott, a NASA space shuttle astronaut who spent two months aboard the original Skylab space platform in 1973, is on Space Adventures’ advisory board, which also includes Apollo 11 moonwalker Buzz Aldrin, Shuttle astronauts Sam Durrance, Tom Jones, Byron Lichtenberg, Norm Thagard, Kathy Thornton, Pierre Thuot, Charles Walker and Russian cosmonaut Yuri Usachev.
So, Owen being part of this board probably helped a great deal in Richard’s desire to be the next space tourist, a decision that was announced in September 2007, and which has seen Richard engage in months of preparation, training and medical examinations to ensure he was fully prepared for his space adventure.
Garriott is joining the Expedition 18 crew, which includes NASA astronaut Michael Fincke and Russian cosmonaut Yuri Lonchakov, with the launch taking place from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
Garriott completed the cosmonaut-training program at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center located in Star City, Russia.
What did Garriott say before the launch, and what educational, scientific and commercial activities does he have planned to help offset the cost of the trip? Please read on to page 2.
World's first 'œ2nd-gen' astronaut and games pioneer lifts off to ISS!
Richard Garriott, son of Owen Garriot, a US Shuttle and Skylab
astronaut, and co-founder of gaming company Origin Systems, is the
world’s sixth space tourist, the world’s first second-generation
astronaut and the first to truly make the US $30m flight a commercial
venture that could eventually pay for itself.
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