Garriott Makes History as 1st Second-Generation Astronaut

VIENNA, Va., Oct. 12 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Space Adventures, Ltd., the only company that provides human space missions to the world marketplace, today announced that its orbital client Richard Garriott and his crew successfully launched aboard a Soyuz TMA spacecraft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan en route to the International Space Station (ISS). Garriott joins the Expedition 18 crew, which includes NASA astronaut Michael Fincke and Russian cosmonaut Yuri Lonchakov.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20081012/CLSU901 )

In preparation for his spaceflight, Garriott, son of NASA astronaut Owen Garriott, completed a cosmonaut-training program at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center located in Star City, Russia. This historic mission marks Garriott as the world's 1st second-generation astronaut.

'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.'

Space Adventures became world renowned in 2001 with the launch of client Dennis Tito, the world's first privately funded spaceflight participant. Since then, the company has launched four other individuals to space.

Eric Anderson, president and CEO of Space Adventures, said, 'It has always been Space Adventures' goal to open the space frontier.