First soprano in space? Sarah Brightman signs on to International Space Station gig

British singer Sarah Brightman, who is scheduled to train this year for a 2015 flight to the International Space Station, will pay $52million.

13:00 12 June 2014

British singer Sarah Brightman hopes to become the first professional musician to sing from space. The soprano, who is scheduled to begin training this year for a 2015 flight to the International Space Station, will pay $52million for a 10-day stay aboard the orbital outpost. She is set to become the eighth privately funded space tourist. 

 

Tom Shelley, president of privately owned Space Adventures, said that the singer is 100per cent committed.  He added: "She's putting together her mission plan now."

 

However, Brightman faces competition from Lady Gaga who, according to some reports, expressed her intention to be the first to perform in space in early 2015 on a Virgin Galactic flight. 

 

So far, Space Adventures arranged nine private missions to the space station, which is a $100bn research laboratory that flies about 260 miles above Earth. Among those who already made the trips include Charles Simonyi, the architect of Microsoft Office. 

 

Meanwhile, Brightman is set to be the first private citizen to visit the station since Cirque du Soleil founder Guy Laliberte who paid $35million for an 11-day stay in September 2009.