For all you very wealthy people out there who like to surf the internet - you can now book your flight online for a place on Mr Branson's Virgin Galactic Spaceship Two!

Go to the holiday search engine site www.Kayak.com and input the following details:
  1. Enter 90n into the 'From' box
  2. Enter 50m into the 'To' box
  3. Put your departure and arrival dates as the same date
  4. Change the 'Economy' selection to 'First-class'
  5. Hit the search button

I hate to advertise Kayak, especially when I am getting no commission, but to me it brings the idea of tourists venturing off into Space one step nearer reality. Just imagine a time in the not so far off future, when Space tourism is as achievable to most people as popping off on your holidays to the Maldives (if they haven't sunk into the Indian Ocean by then!) 

Sadly, a university professors salary will not yet stretch as far as the current price tag of $200,000 but I live in hope! 

Any millionaire entrepreneurs out there that would like to fly into Space but are concerned by the medical risks? Why not take along your own personal Space Doctor (namely, me!) with specialist knowledge and experience of performing CPR in microgravity! 
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The coming week sees the 25th anniversary of a disaster that shocked a nation and resulted in an investigation revealing a space agency that had allegedly become more concerned with schedules and public relations than with safety.

28th January 1986 saw the launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida of the NASA space shuttle Challenger, complete with a crew of seven. Just 73 seconds into the flight, disaster struck when the shuttle broke apart and disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean. The crew compartment was eventually recovered from the ocean floor, and although some crew members are thought to have lived through the initial breakup of the spacecraft, nobody could have survived the impact of the crew compartment with the ocean surface.

 An investigating commission concluded that the accident cause was a faulty O-ring in one of two solid-fuel rocket boosters, coupled with the very cold weather on the launch day which caused the O-ring to shrink and allow hot gases to escape, and consequently ignite. Unfortunately, NASA managers had known about this potential problem from previous launches but ignored the warning signs.

Understandably, no chances are being taken with the final and much postponed launch of shuttle Discovery following ongoing problems with the fuel tanks. Launch is currently due to take place on 24th February 2011.

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Nasa astronaut Timothy L Kopra
NASA astronaut Timothy Kopra will not now be flying on space shuttle Discovery's last flight (STS-133), should it at last manage to take off on 24th February 2011.  Having taken a tumble while riding his bicycle at the weekend, he is currently recuperating from his injuries, and thus will be replaced by Stephen Bowen, a veteran of two previous launches. Bowen, having flown on the last mission STS-132, will become the first astronaut to fly consecutive missions.

Doubts also linger regarding the command position onboard the final flight of space shuttle Endeavour, due to take place 19th April 2011. Current official man in charge of STS-134 Mark Kelly, remains at the hospital bedside of his wife US Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who was seriously wounded in the shooting incident in Tucson, Arizona on 8th Jan 2011, in which six people were killed. Back-up commander Rick Sturckow has been put on standby.

Shuttle crew replacement has occasionally occurred over the years, though not usually at such a late stage. To try and prevent preflight injuries NASA has a list of high risk activities that astronauts assigned to flights are not allowed to take part in, such as skiing, parachuting, and motorcycle riding. Riding a bike, however, is not currently on the banned list!

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Time to return back to my blogging ways after an extended break for Xmas and New Year, which I am happy to say was spent in Rio de Janeiro, mostly on the beach! 

Should you ever have the chance to be in Rio for the New Year's eve celebrations then you will have a truly amazing time. Go dressed in white and join the 2 million or so other people on Copacabana beach for the best spectacle of fireworks and music on this planet.

And what better way to start the New Year than by receiving news of an award from the Ibero-American Aerospace Medicine Association - who kindly chose me as "Personality of the Year 2010"!

It is wonderful to gain acknowledgment from my peers and colleagues in the world of aerospace medicine, and I humbly thank you all for your support. May this New Year bring us all still closer together, and may I wish all members of AIMA a successful and happy 2011.     

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