Garriott in orbit

Richard Garriott is now the sixth commercial passenger to fly into orbit on a Soyuz taxi flight to the ISS. The Soyuz TMA-13 spacecraft lifted off on schedule at 3:01 am EDT (0701 GMT) and entered orbit nine minutes later. The flight is a realization of a long-term dream of Garriott, son of former NASA astronaut Owen Garriott, who grew up in Houston immersed in spaceflight but unable to directly follow in his father’s footsteps and join the NASA astronaut corps because of his eyesight. Along the way, Richard Garriott has invested in a number of commercial space companies, including Space Adventures, the company that provided him with his flight to space today.

Garriott had this to say in a Space Adventures press release issued this morning after the launch:

“Today, my dream of following in my father’s footsteps to explore new frontiers is being realized,” said Richard Garriott. “Throughout my life, my sense of adventure has taken me to the ends of the Earth to embark on journeys few people have encountered. It’s with honor and appreciation that I launch on my greatest adventure yet, and step into a role assumed by only five private individuals before me.” Garriott continued, “I’ve dedicated this flight to not only scientific and environmental research, but also educational outreach. I’m thrilled to be able to excite students throughout the world and demonstrate how far our dreams can take us.”

There were a number of people who traveled to Baikonur to see Garriott’s launch, including, as Reuters reported, Google co-founder Sergey Brin, who himself is planning to fly into space, perhaps on a dedicated commercial Soyuz flight to the station in 2011. Charles Simonyi, who preceded Garriott in the spring of 2007 and will follow him in a return trip to the station next year, was also in attendance.

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