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Stephen Hawking, who had a fictitious space trip by appearing on Star Trek: The Next Generation (pictures in previous post here), is now planning a real trip into space. The Telegraph reports:

Prof Stephen Hawking is planning a space flight. The world’s best-known scientist, who is 65 today, told The Daily Telegraph: “This year I’m planning a zero-gravity flight and to go into space in 2009.”

A zero gravity flight is what astronauts call the “vomit comet”, in which an aeroplane flies in such a way that people inside are temporarily weightless.

Prof Hawking’s next step towards the cosmos then depends on the Virgin Galactic space tourism plans
of Sir Richard Branson, whose SpaceShipTwo will carry six passengers into a low Earth orbit from 2008.

The craft will be launched at 50,000ft from a mothership and soar into space at around 360,000ft, reaching a speed of 2,500mph — more than three times the speed of sound.

At present, a flight costs about £100,000 but Sir Richard will sponsor Prof Hawking’s mission.