Google co-founder Sergey Brin has paid $5 million to reserve a seat on a future flight into space, according to The Associated Press.
Space Adventures said no decision has been made
yet about when Brin, a 35-year-old billionaire and native of Moscow, will fly or where he might go. So far, the company has sent five tourists to the space station, but it has also been dreaming about
other destinations, including a swing around the far side of the moon.
The company announced plans Wednesday for a private flight in 2011 to the international space station on a Russian-built
Soyuz rocket. Brin did not appear at the company's news conference at the Explorer's Club in Manhattan, but he said in a statement that he considered his $5 million deposit an investment in the
company, as well as an option to participate in a future space flight.
"I am a big believer in the exploration and commercial development of the space frontier, and am looking forward to the
possibility of going into space," the statement said. Google Inc. chief executive Eric Schmidt declined to comment Wednesday, calling it a personal matter.
--Tanya Irwin