A Japanese billionaire is offering a lunar trip to eight would-be astronauts in real life.
Eccentric fashion tycoon Yusaku Maezawa is looking for applicants from around the world to take a seat on a trip on Elon Musk’s SpaceX flight in 2023.
Maezawa shared the application details on Twitter Wednesday morning. He appealed for people to apply “from all kinds of backgrounds,” in a video posted to YouTube.
Maezawa, 45, has promised to cover the costs for those selected in his mission, titled dearMoon.
The billionaire and CEO of Japanese fashion retailer Zozo was the first private passenger to book a spot on the Elon Musk’s space expedition in 2018 for an undisclosed amount.
Watch this video to learn more about the selection process. It also contains a special message from @elonmusk #dearMoon
↓Check the full versionhttps://t.co/i3ucR6BB44 pic.twitter.com/B3d8g0JvvP
— Yusaku Maezawa (MZ) (@yousuckMZ) March 2, 2021
Approximately 12 people in total will fly around the moon and back on the week-long voyage, Maezawa said.
“I have bought all the seats so it will be a private ride,” he added.
Originally Maezawa had planned to invite six to eight artists to join him but on Wednesday he revealed he would be broadening the pool of applicants.
“I wanted to reach out to a wider more diverse audience,” he said, speaking from his home in Chiba, Japan. “If you see yourself as an artist then you are an artist.”
Known for his high spending on art and sports, Maezawa is no stranger to publicity stunts and has a penchant for musing on ideas, such as a world without money.
Source: NBCNEWS