Tourist Dice-K to Visit International Space Station

"I have had a dream since I was 5 years old. That's my motivation to go to space," Enomoto said on Thursday at a press conference.

He is scheduled to launch aboard a Russian Soyuz on 14 September 2006, along with two replacement crew for the station. ISS commander Michael Lopez-Alegria and flight engineer Mikhail Tyurin will be taking over from two of the current crew members Jeff Williams and Pavel Vinogradov. Enomoto will return to Earth with these departing astronauts on 24 September.

Enomoto will take part in some medical experiments for the European Space Agency, one of which is a motion sickness experiment involving the tracking of eye movements.

He said he was really looking forward to the experience of floating around in micro-gravity, but he also wanted to take pictures of the Moon, Sun and stars from space.

If all goes well, Enomoto says he would consider starting a business related to human space flight.

Previous reports have suggested that Enomoto plans to wear a red costume during his flight to emulate Char Aznable, a fighter pilot in the Japanese anime series Gundam.

Enomoto paid a reported $20 million to take the trip aboard the Soyuz. The 35-year-old's voyage was booked with Space Adventures, which has organised the three previous space tourist visits to the outpost.

Enomoto lives in Hong Kong and made his fortune with a telecommunications company called Livedoor.

Source: New Scientist Space