SpaceX Booked Its First Civilian Passenger On A Trip To The Moon

Elon Musk’s SpaceX wants to be the first to bring a civilian passenger to the moon. The rocket that will serve as a vessel for the trip is called “BFR,” short for “Big Fucking Rocket.” That’s not a joke, that’s actually how Elon Musk’s mind works.

The Daily Beast reports that Yusaku Maezawa, a very famous and rich art collector, is going to be one of the passengers among the BFR. He plans to invite artists along for the ride, although he hasn’t decided who. This would make Maezawa and his guests the first civilians to visit the moon in human history.

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Elon Musk announced his plans on a press conference on September 17th, where he also talked gloomily about the end of the world and the possibility of natural disasters.

“There could be some natural event or some man-made event that ends civilization as we know it, so it’s important to become as a multi-planet civilization as soon as possible,” Musk said. The trip aboard the BFR is planned to last from 4 to 5 days and would democratize space travel for future generations, something that’s been never done before and that seems increasingly important as the years go by.

SpaceX has signed the world’s first private passenger to fly around the Moon aboard our BFR launch vehicle—an important step toward enabling access for everyday people who dream of traveling to space. Find out who’s flying and why on Monday, September 17. pic.twitter.com/64z4rygYhk

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 14, 2018

While Musk made it sound as if the space trip could happen in a couple of years, other scientists warn against making such premature announcements, claiming that when it comes to space a lot is said but not a lot is done. “It’s typical SpaceX, promising results on a schedule that is rarely achieved,” said a NASA advisor.

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Tickets to fly to a space station are said to be valued at $35 million dollars, and that’s just 150 miles away from Earth. The moon is over 200,000 miles from Earth. For now, space will only be democratized for the wealthy.