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You can book a $4.4 million hotel room in space starting 2012
Finally we have something else to look forward to in 2012 other than the end of the world. Thanks to $3 billion in funding from an anonymous billionaire space enthusiast (any guesses as to who that might be?), the Galactic Suite Space Resort has announced that it will begin offering a three-night stay at its hotel in 2012.
CEO Xavier Claramunt, a former aerospace engineer, says that the project will begin with a single pod in orbit 280 miles above the Earth with the capacity to hold four guests and two astronaut-pilots. If you've got the bucks, you'll be able to travel around the world every 80 minutes and see the sun rise 15 times a day.
And even if you're not yet ready to make a reservation, check out the cool Galactic Suite site to learn all about how to become one of what the company's calling "Homo spaciens."
By SethSJ at 5:53 PM ON 11/03/09
Sure, I'll pay 4.4 million dollars. I mean, as soon as I strike oil on Uranus.
By asfm at 6:05 PM ON 11/03/09
Anyone taking bets on this not being ready by 2012?
By closettrekkie at 6:06 PM ON 11/03/09
Were did I put that last winning lottery ticket ?
By Dr. Normal at 6:15 PM ON 11/03/09
This isn't the first company to promise a hotel room in space. We'll see if it's the first one to actually deliver the Orbital Club experience, but there's genuine reasons to be skeptical, especially with that timetable..
By Anrkist at 7:45 PM ON 11/03/09
Time to recall all of those milk products.
My bet... Richard Branson. I'd say Bill Gates but he's to busy wasting all his money on needy people.
In addition to a previous comment, the First Amendment only applies in America...
By Fury161 at 8:02 PM ON 11/03/09
How do we know they won't fake it like the moon landings?
By umbran at 9:05 PM ON 11/03/09
Everyone's going to guess Branson. But his total worth is something like $4.4 billion - if he's doing it himself, he'd have to liquidate 75% of his empire to do it. Others might guess Bill Gates, and they might be close...
There another candidate - the man who funded Scaled Composites for the X Prize: Paul Gardner Allen, the *other* founder of Microsoft. His estimated worth is over $16 billion, and could thus afford to drop $3 billion on one venture himself.
By Gilveron at 9:15 PM ON 11/03/09
Now if only he'd spend as much on the Blazers.
By divephotog at 12:45 AM ON 11/04/09
We know who it is... It is S.R. Hadden, and his next project is this incredibly expensive and complicated machine for interstellar transport. (Contact for those who are in the dark!)
The hotel will be a remade version of MIR... no amenities... - kh
By ericlklein at 4:44 AM ON 11/04/09
If you translate their press you find other details:
Company is based in Spain, and is run by Xavier Claramunt, a former space-engineer and now CEO of galactic suite,
43 people have already reserved .The launch will be 30,000 kilometres per hour, the ship will carry 4 guests and 2 pilots. The trip will take one and a half day. After a stay of three daysthe ship will return to be collect the guests again.
Richard Bransons' Virgin Galactic is shortly going up with spaceshuttles tourist on a regular basis. For a trips of about two and a half hours, including four and a half minute atmosphere, with a the maximum of six passengers each paying 200,000 dollar (141,000 euro) pay. Virgin Galactic has already 300 entries from more than 30 countries. Candidates together have already paid EUR 30 million in advances. Among them the scientist Stephen Hawking and designer Philippe Starck. The first flights would between 12 and 18 months from now.
By David at 8:02 AM ON 11/04/09
I am not the mans judge Mind you but you think one csn do better with the money putting it to good use besides wasting it on someone elses Vanity who by the way does not explain how he intends on solving the flying space debree to avoid collisions while he has people up there he himself would be responsible for Who would be dumb enough to put their lives in the hands of a vain engineer for that kind of money?!
By silverrose1313 at 9:27 AM ON 11/04/09
this sounds like an expensive Y2K shelter for when the world ends in 2012. Kinda wonder who the 4 guests will be when that happens, and if we waould want them to continue the human race.
By Road Runner at 1:34 PM ON 11/04/09
That's a bargain at twice the price versus the price of a week's stay on the International Space Station!
By James Bond at 2:38 PM ON 11/04/09
Wasn't this in Moonraker?
By ALEX-KING at 9:40 AM ON 11/05/09
Hey , FURY161, the moon landings where NOT A FAKE, get a life, I worked for NASA in the 60´s you dweeb!!!
People did go to the moon!!!!. This Hotel thing by 2012 will probably not happen for a long long time but to dream is to set goals and to eventually achieve them!
Wake up and smell the moon dust!
Visit mobile.syfy.com/wire on your mobile device.
ALEX-KING:
Hey , FURY161, the moon landings where NOT A FAKE, get a life, I worked for NASA in the 60´s you dweeb!!! People di...More »