Dr. Charles Simonyi Presents Space Tourist

Almost 50 years ago, many countries competed in technology innovation – specifically, The Race to the Moon was a competition between the Soviets and Americans that the entire world watched. As the Cold War diminished, technology competition lessened and an era of cooperation materialized, and as early as 1975, scientific cooperation between the US and the Soviet Union was launched with the first cooperative human space flight.

From the competitive to cooperative – Now, the age of space exploration has advanced to a point where private citizens can travel to space. Using proven equipment and working side-by-side with professional astronauts and cosmonauts from a variety of countries, this new era is defining “outer space” as a new tourist destination.

Between April 7 and April 21, 2007, Dr. Charles Simonyi successfully completed his 14-day mission to the International Space Station. Convinced that humans will one day travel and live in space, Dr. Simonyi traveled with the hope of advancing civilian space flight, assisting space station research, and involving the world’s youth in the science of space travel.