Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Space Tourist Video Gamer Blasts Off

Son of NASA astronaut hitches ride on Russian rocket for $35M

By Elizabeth Wolff, Newser User

Posted Oct 12, 2008 4:44 AM CDT

(Newser) – US video game magnate Richard Garriott blasted off into space today aboard a Russian rocket—and all it cost him was $35 million. The "space tourist" was cheered on by his father, a one-time NASA astronaut, Reuters reports. "I can see he is... Read full story »

COMMENTS

Read the comment policy

You need to Log in to Newser to comment. Don't have an account yet? Sign up now!

There are no comments

A snapshot of the day's best news stories.

View Larger Grid

All Today Yesterday Pick a Date

What's Popular Now on Facebook

Cops Shoot Naked Guy Eating Man's Face on Highway

Japanese Artist Serves Up Own Cooked Genitals

Reuters (Source Grid »)

Science • Lifestyle • Money

space tourism

More Newser Stories

For Rent: Slightly Used Space Shuttle Launchpad

Kennedy Space Center is looking for tenants

(NEWSER) - Wondering where to park your space shuttle? Consider Cape Canaveral's Kennedy Space Center. "We’re putting out the word officially and unofficially that Kennedy Space Center is open for business," says a chief architect at the facility. "I have a lot of facilities that we, NASA, no longer need," adds Kennedy’s director. "I don’t have the money to maintain them, I don’t have the money to tear them down. They’re just going to sit and rot"—unless someone rents them out. The available facilities include a launchpad, two mobile launch platforms, two maintenance hangars, and a 15,000-foot runway. More»

Space Tourism Blasts Off

Virgin Galactic to start the business up in earnest

(NEWSER) - The year is still nascent, but 2012 may go down in history as the year space tourism finally took flight. This year Virgin Galactic will finally begin launching its much-ballyhooed jaunts into space, the New York Times reports, opening up the heavens to the non-billionaire set. Granted, you’ll still need to be pretty well heeled to afford the $200,000 flight, but that’s a far cry from the tens of millions that tickets aboard Russia’s capsules cost—a price only seven people have paid. More»

First 'Spaceport' Coming to New Mexico

But project is late and getting expensive

(NEWSER) - Now that the shuttle's blasted off for the last time, attention is turning to the private space industry, and NPR has found an interesting piece of that puzzle: America’s first spaceport. The structure, under construction in a New Mexico desert, aims to be something like an airport for spaceships, and it’s already signed up Virgin Galactic as its first client. The site has a lot of advantages—it’s sparsely populated, its airspace is clear, and it’s a mile above sea level. More»

Space Tourism May Warm Planet

Rockets send soot into stratosphere

(NEWSER) - Space tourism may sound, well, out-of-this-world, but there is a good chance it will pollute this world, possibly contributing to global warming. As firms like Boeing prepare to launch space tourism businesses , a new study warns that the soot emitted by commercial rockets may get stuck in the stratosphere, notes the Christian Science Monitor . With repeated launches, the concentration will build. More»

Virgin Galactic Spacecraft Makes First Solo Flight

Private spacecraft on course to take paying passengers to space

(NEWSER) - The world's first manned commercial spacecraft has reached a major milestone. Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo was released from the mothership and completed its first solo glide flight over the Mojave Desert yesterday, Wired reports. The craft, which is undergoing rigorous testing ahead of plans to carry paying customers to space and back, landed safely at the Mojave Air and Space Port after being released at 45,000 feet. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

Space Tourist Video Gamer Blasts Off

Son of NASA astronaut hitches ride on Russian rocket for $35M

space tourism

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

For Rent: Slightly Used Space Shuttle Launchpad

Kennedy Space Center is looking for tenants

Space Tourism Blasts Off

Virgin Galactic to start the business up in earnest

First 'Spaceport' Coming to New Mexico

But project is late and getting expensive

Space Tourism May Warm Planet

Rockets send soot into stratosphere

Virgin Galactic Spacecraft Makes First Solo Flight

Private spacecraft on course to take paying passengers to space

About Us

Site

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?