Slashdot Mirror
Google's Brin Books a Space Flight
coondoggie writes "Google largely conquered the Earth — now it is taking aim at space. At least co-founder Sergei Brin is. Brin today said he put down $5 million toward a flight to the International Space Station in 2011.
Brin's space travel will be brokered by Space Adventures, the space outfit that sent billionaire software developer Charles Simonyi to the station in 2007. Computer game developer (and son of a former NASA astronaut) Richard Garriott is currently planning a mission to the ISS in October 2008. Garriott is paying at least $30 million to launch toward the space station aboard a Russian Soyuz spaceship according to Space Adventures." Make sure to wave when you are over Michigan, man. I'll be the one on my lawn, green with envy.
Suppose that the cash goes toward planting trees, research, efficiency upgrades -- something like that. Then it might make sense. But cutting out the middle man might make a lot more sense. I suppose it depends on how much you trust your carbon offset broker.
Personally, I've yet to hear a compelling case as to why (and to whom) I should be making this sort of donation.
I'm jealous and also quite in awe of how brave people are to venture into space. Some sobering stats on manned space flight: 18 of the 430 people who've ventured into space didn't make it back alive. Of course, quite a few astronauts and cosmonauts have flown more than once, but I calculate that the shuttle's overall fatality rate is running at around 1.8%. IOW, the chance of dying is about the same as my chance of winning $10 in this week's 6/49 Lotto. I hope he has a fantastic trip and that he blogs about his experience.
Would I be willing to venture into space if given the chance? I'm not sure. I'd love to have the opportunity to consider it, though.
Simony went up on a Soyuz. We're not talking about the same thing with Brin. If things go as planned he'll get there via a privately owned and operated flight. It will still be a Soyuz but it won't be owned and operated by any government agency. Hence it's the first private spaceflight.
According to google.org Google has donated $33 milion from AdSense adverts to more than 850 nonprofit organisations in 10 countries throught the world.
The Make-A-Wish foundation has received more than 25% of all the online donations from Google.
Google has given more than 30% of all the yearly donations to the Doctors without borders program.
Google has also donated to the Grameen Foundation located in the US and $2 mils to the OLPC project...
Read more here[insert lame sig here]
It'll be flown by a Russian commander, out of the Russian launch complex in Balkinour.
Call it whatever makes you feel warm and fuzzy, but it's a Russian rocket, piloted by a Russian commander, launched out of a Russian spaceport. I guarantee you communications are run through Korolev. Space Adventures purchased a flight, not the flight hardware. This is not privatized space travel. Look to small companies in the southeast US - SpaceX, XCOR, Armadillo, Blue Origin if you want to see "private spaceflight"