Fly you to the moon: Personal space flight by 2012

EADS Astrium is a new jet being designed that could make space tourism very possible by 2012. It would cost a staggering �200,000 per ticket for only three minutes of weightlessness. The four-passenger jet looks like a pretty conventional airplane from the outside, but will make take you all that much higher.

The Astrium will take off from conventional airports and will launch like any other plane. The magic starts at 12km up, which is when the rocket boosters kick in. The jet reaches a staggering 60 km in 80 seconds. Using an innovative seat design, the passengers will be in comfort even during acceleration and deceleration. Will the Rat Pack’s dream of flying to the moon become a reality?

— Andrew Dobrow

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