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Third 'Space Tourist' Blasts Off Into Space

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on from the pricetags-that-make-you-wince dept.

auckland map writes "A Russian Soyuz rocket has lifted off from the Central Asian steppes, launching U.S. millionaire scientist Gregory Olsen and a new Russian-U.S. crew on a two-day journey to the international space station. Olsen is reportedly paying $20 million for this trip." From the article: "The cash-strapped Russian Federal Space Agency has turned to space tourism to generate money. Olsen is the third non-astronaut to visit the orbiting station. California businessman Dennis Tito paid about $20 million for a week long trip to the space station in 2001, and South African Mark Shuttleworth followed a year later."

5 of 83 comments (clear)

  1. Smart guy by evil+agent · · Score: 5, Interesting
    According to Dr. Gregory Olsen's bio, his company has been developing optoelectronic devices and that "This cutting edge camera technology is revolutionizing detection capabilities and providing reliable, high performance products used for a variety of critical military, national security, telecommunications and industrial applications such as covert surveillance, machine vision, night vision, health and safety protocols, historical art inspection and many others."

    Perhaps we shouldn't have let this guy get too acquainted with the Russians...

    --
    End transmission.
  2. You would have thought....... by reality-bytes · · Score: 4, Interesting

    You would think that any manned spaced launch (and many unmanned ones) would be important News for Nerds wouldn't you?

    Still, this story hits the front page about 17 hours after the launch.

    I did know it was going but perhaps some would have watched on TV if they knew the launch was taking place ie: Slashdot could run a story *beforehand*.

    For those of you who missed the live video, the footage was excellent, gorgeous steady tracking footage was provided by a telescope mounted camera followed by live in-capsule footage right through all the stage burnouts (never seen *live* interior shots on a shuttle launch) and then about 15 mins of on-orbit initial operations footage. I thoroughly recommend watching the live feed for the Exp 13 launch.

    Plus the crew had a cool little troll (the little plastic ones) on a bungee to show the capsules movements on orbit.

    --
    Ripping an new rectum in the fabric of spacetime.
    1. Re:You would have thought....... by Torinir · · Score: 2, Interesting

      "Plus the crew had a cool little troll (the little plastic ones) on a bungee to show the capsules movements on orbit."

      Too bad some of the /. trolls couldn't have been taken up into orbit too... and jettisoned.

      Hmmm... that's actually an idea...

      Someone loan me $20m. :D

  3. cliches that never grow old by khallow · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Google reports 1040 hits of "cash-strapped" near "Russian space agency". I don't intend to add great insight here, but in today's sophisticated capitalist societies, there must be other synonyms much as the Eskimos supposedly had 40 words for snow.

  4. Live webcasts from Space Station by FleaPlus · · Score: 3, Interesting

    According to the site for Sensors Unlimited (Olsen's company), Dr. Gregory Olsen will be doing a number of live webcasts from the International Space Station, from October 3-7.