An unlikely list of customers

An article in The West Australian reports that a Virgin Galactic seat will be auctioned off Saturday night during the Chinese Chamber of Commerce annual ball in Perth. Curiously, the article claims that “Bill Gates, Warren Buffet [sic], Oprah Winfrey, Sir Richard Branson and Donald Trump have already signed up for a space flight”. Branson, of course, has “signed up” for a flight: he owns Virgin Galactic. The other names, though, should be treated with a heavy dose of skepticism. After all, does the Oracle of Omaha strike you as someone who would spend $200K on a suborbital spaceflight? Although perhaps he and Bill could convince Oprah and The Donald to play a round of zero-g bridge…