Simonyi in Space
Fifth space tourist launches from Baikonur
by Carol Pinchefsky
by Carol Pinchefsky
Today, 58-year-old billionaire Charles Simonyi has become the fifth space tourist to pay for a trip to the International Space Station
. He launched today from Baikonur, Kazakhstan, in a Soyuz capsule for a thirteen-day adventure, along with two cosmonauts. Previous space tourists have included
Dennis Tito
and Anousheh Ansari.
The price tag has increased to $25 million. Because there are no competitors, there are no checks against other price increases. Still, Simonyi can afford it: he earned his fortune as a software programmer.
In this MSNBC article, Eric Anderson, CEO of Space Adventures
, the agents for all five journeys, said that wealthy people taking trips to space ultimately leads to more investment. "[The trip will]l never be $20,000 or $25,000 unless it starts out at $20 million or $25 million."
Simonyi will be bloggging about his experiences on the website CharlesInSpace .
As with the previous four space tourists, Simonyi is taking the opportunity to conduct experiments. One experiment involves measuring radiation levels.
Today, 58-year-old billionaire Charles Simonyi has become the fifth space tourist to pay for a trip to the International Space Station
The price tag has increased to $25 million. Because there are no competitors, there are no checks against other price increases. Still, Simonyi can afford it: he earned his fortune as a software programmer.
In this MSNBC article, Eric Anderson, CEO of Space Adventures
Simonyi will be bloggging about his experiences on the website CharlesInSpace .
As with the previous four space tourists, Simonyi is taking the opportunity to conduct experiments. One experiment involves measuring radiation levels.