Flying private passengers around the moon

Yusaku Maezawa & Elon Musk

Yusaku Maezawa, a rich Japanese billionaire paid SpaceX an unenclosed huge sum of money to take himself and several others on a trip around the Moon.

The money for the trip is going towards the cost of building a huge new reusable spaceship (called ‘Starship‘) which can then be used for future missions.  Once the spaceship has been thoroughly tested and flown an uncrewed test fight, it will then take the passengers on the 6 day trip around the Moon which is planned for 2023.

The last visit to the moon was in 1972 on the Apollo 17 mission. Only 24 people have visited the moon so far.

SpaceX, lead by Elon Musk, have been very successful in launching satellites, sending cargo and crew to the International Space Station using it’s Falcon 9 rocket, but they’ve always had much bigger plans.  The new spaceship will be designed not only to take people to the Moon, but to any part of the solar system, from Mars to Pluto and re-land back on Earth.

Yusaku is yet to pick the other members to travel with him, but he wants them to be various talented artists such as a painter, musician, film director, fashion designer; people who will be inspired and will inspire others to follow.

SpaceX Moon mission presentation
SpaceX proposed new spaceship
Previous Apollo Missions
Apollo 1Failed test flight21-Feb-67N/ALC 34Saturn IB (AS-204)
Apollo 7Successful test flight11-Oct-6810d 20h 09mLC 34Saturn IB (AS-205)
Apollo 8Successful Moon orbit21-Dec-6806d 03h 00mLC 39ASaturn V (AS-503)
Apollo 9Successful test flight3-Mar-6910d 01h 00mLC 39ASaturn V (AS-504)
Apollo 10Successful Moon orbit18-May-6908d 00h 03mLC 39BSaturn V (AS-505)
Apollo 11Successful Moon landing16-Jul-6908d 03h 18mLC 39ASaturn V (AS-506)
Apollo 12Successful Moon landing14-Nov-6910d 04h 36mLC 39ASaturn V (AS-507)
Apollo 13Failed Moon landing11-Apr-7005d 22h 54mLC 39ASaturn V (AS-508)
Apollo 14Successful Moon landing31-Jan-7109d 00h 01mLC 39ASaturn V (AS-509)
Apollo 15Successful Moon landing26-Jul-7112d 07h 11mLC 39ASaturn V (AS-510)
Apollo 16Successful Moon landing16-Apr-7211d 01h 51mLC 39ASaturn V (AS-511)
Apollo 17Successful Moon landing7-Dec-7212d 13h 51mLC 39ASaturn V (AS-512)
Apollo 18Cancelled Moon landing1972
Apollo 19Cancelled Moon landing1972
Apollo 20Cancelled Moon landing1972

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