So your dream of becoming an astronaut didn't work out. That's not such a bad thing given NASA's track record. Leave it to Richard Branson, the tycoon behind Virgin Galactic, to carve out an entirely new travel niche: space tourism.
While it's a ways down the road- 2008 to be exact-space travel is just within reach for a mere $200k (with a $20k deposit). You'll have a couple of years to visualize what your other-worldly adventure will be like. Like a scene from a movie you will shoot into space aboard the VSS Enterprise, which is carried under a mother ship to almost 10 miles above sea level. Then the countdown begins.
Traveling at lightning speeds you'll blast through the edges of the atmosphere, which you can view through individual panoramic windows. Once in space you can look back at earth, seeing a thousand miles in any direction. That's like seeing North Africa if you were in a spaceship above London or Miami from above Washington DC. You will see the clarity of the solar system and the powerful rays of the sun. Your space adventure will be caught on video and film so you can prove that you actually went to outer space. If you're going to spend $200k on a trip, you should have something to show for it right?
For LxM Amy Covington |