posted 09-15-2014 12:00 AM               

Apply to fly: Astronaut-led group launches contest to send public to space

A new astronaut-led, private spaceflight training group has launched a contest to redefine the "right stuff" by giving away trips to space in return for the impact those who go can make to the world.

Spaceship Earth Grants (SEG), presented by Star Harbor Space Training Academy, will award one ticket onboard a privately-operated suborbital spacecraft for every 50,000 applications it receives starting Monday (Sept. 15) through the end of the year. As the number of applicants increase, SEG will raise the rate at which space flights are awarded (to as high as one in 25,000).

The group, led by former NASA astronauts Leland Melvin and Ron Garan, believe that by opening spaceflight to as many people as possible, it has the potential to impact the way we think, behave and relate to our world.

"Space is thrilling; however, this is not just about creating thrill rides for people," said Melvin, SEG president, a two-time space shuttle astronaut and former NASA associate administrator for education. "There are aspects of space flight that can generate shifts in perspective to positively and profoundly influence the way people behave and think about our world."