An announcement from the X PRIZE Foundation and ZERO-G:

James Cameron Hosts The ZERO-G Experience™
Seats to be Auctioned on eBay to Support X PRIZE Foundation

LOS ANGELES, CA (August 30, 2010) – Helping to raise funds for the X PRIZE Foundation (www.xprize.org), Avatar Producer/Director, James Cameron, will participate as the honored guest aboard an extraordinary ZERO-G Experience taking off from Van Nuys Airport (VNY) in Los Angeles, California on Saturday, October 9, 2010. Additional X PRIZE Board Members and special guests have purchased seats to participate in this special event . Three available seats for this once-in-a-lifetime adventure will be auctioned on eBay to the general public beginning Tuesday, August 31, 2010 and ending Friday, September 3, 2010. To find out more information about the auction and to bid on seats, visit http://eBay.com/cameron.

The weightless flight will take place aboard G-FORCE ONE, a specially modified, FAA-approved, Boeing 727-200 aircraft. The flight is identical to those used by NASA to train its astronauts. This unique journey offers guests the chance to fly like Superman and flip like an Olympic gymnast. It’s not simulated; ZERO-G replicates the same levels of gravity on Mars (1/3-gravity), the Moon (1/6-gravity), and zero gravity. Martha Stewart, Ozzy Osbourne and Stephen Hawking are just a few notable passengers who have flown with ZERO-G and proclaimed it to be one of the most thrilling experiences of their lives.

James Cameron, who serves on the X PRIZE Foundation’s Exploration Advisory Committee, recorded a video regarding the upcoming flight. In it he states, “My wife Susie and I are really excited about flying in the 727 for The ZERO-G Experience™. I’ve done it before and it’s really an amazing experience. So, come along with us and we’ll go get weightless! Bid high on this one because it’s a great way to support our (X PRIZE Foundation’s) efforts in space.”

“We have many high-profile individuals joining this flight including Jim Gianopulos, Chairman/CEO of Fox Films and Tim Ferriss, best-selling author of 'The 4-Hour Workweek,'” said Peter H. Diamandis, Chairman & CEO of the X PRIZE Foundation. “All proceeds from this eBay auction will go the X PRIZE Foundation to help design future prizes intended to drive radical breakthroughs for the benefit of humanity.”

Here is a video by Matt Ross from the ZERO-G flight with John Carmack, Armadillo Aerospace members and others:



Update: More notes from the Carmack/Garriott presentation at QuakeCon on Friday: Official Armadillo Q&A thread - International Space Fellowship - Aug.13.10

A report on the Alan Stern family's weightless July 4th adventure: First-Hand Look: One Family's Unforgettable Zero Gravity Holiday - SPACE.com - July.5.10.

Here were two articles leading up to their trip:
/-- Family Aims High for Ultimate 4th of July Vacation: Zero Gravity Flight - SPACE.com - July.2.10
/-- Vacations In Zero Gravity Come of Age - SPACE.com - July.1.10

Speaking of ZERO-G, whole families like that of Alan Stern's sometimes go for the weightless experience on their plane: Vacations In Zero Gravity Come of Age - SPACE.com.

ZERO-G responds to a NASA inspector general report critical of the performance of the performance of their microgravity flights:
/-- Zero Gravity Corp's statement regarding the Office of Inspector General's Audit Report of NASA's Microgravity Flight Services - SpaceRef
/-- NASA OIG Review of NASA's Microgravity Flight Services - SpaceRef - June.18.10
/-- Review of NASA's Microgravity Flight Services - NASA OIG - June.18.10 (pdf)

A message from ZERO-G:

Zero Gravity Corporation Establishes the ZERO-G Weightless Lab
The only commercially available reduced gravity environment for scientific experimentation
Flights scheduled for July and September 2010

Today, Zero Gravity Corporation (ZERO-G) announced the establishment of the ZERO-G WEIGHTLESS LAB. The specially designed two-day program provides the only commercial access to Martian, Lunar, zero and hyper gravity environments for scientific research. The program is open to academic, corporate and government agency applicants.

“The establishment of the ZERO-G WEIGHTLESS LAB demonstrates ZERO-G and Space Adventures’ continued commitment to open the space frontier to all,” said Eric Anderson, President and CEO of Space Adventures/ZERO-G. “The ZERO-G WEIGHTLESS LAB provides open access for commercial and government entities to conduct research in a reduced gravity environment that is not only affordable, but available today. The microgravity laboratory is completely operational; no test flights, development effort, or outside investment is required. Space is open for business!”

The ZERO-G WEIGHTLESS LAB, which was specially designed to meet researcher’s needs, offers clients the availability to charter a section of the plane rather than the entire plane, for the two-day program. The LAB offers a total of 25 parabolas, adequate storage space and a state-of-the-art containment unit for smaller research projects.

“When I traveled to the International Space Station (ISS), my most prized on-orbit activity was the protein crystallization project. The results were just as we predicted and my team has flown another specimen to the ISS since my flight,” said Richard Garriott, Space Adventures’ sixth orbital spaceflight client and the 1st second generation American astronaut. “The ZERO-G WEIGHTLESS LAB is a great first-step in space-based research and its available today. Why wait until other spaceflight options are available? Fly now! Get more time in weightlessness, at a far lower cost!”

All applicants must submit a Research Proposal Package. The proposal will be reviewed by ZERO-G’s Research Staff and its airline partner, Amerijet International Cargo. Upon acceptance, ZERO-G will work to obtain proper FAA approvals for the experiments, including a Test Readiness Review. Past client projects have included studies in biomedical and pharmaceutical research, fluid and fundamental physics, materials science, aerospace engineering, space exploration hardware and human space habitation.

Two ZERO-G WEIGHTLESS LAB flights have already been scheduled. On July 22-23, the plane will fly out of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. and on September 17-18, out of Memphis, Tenn. Upon demand, additional dates and locations can be added.

For flight specifications and detailed application protocol, please visit http://www.gozerog.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Research_Programs.welcome or contact Michelle Peters, Director of Education and Research Programs at info [at] gozerog.com or at +1 703 524 7172 x 210.

About ZERO-G
Zero Gravity Corporation is a privately held space entertainment and tourism company whose mission is to make the excitement and adventure of weightlessness accessible to the public. ZERO-G is the first and only FAA-approved provider of weightless flight to the general public, as well as the entertainment and film industries; corporate and incentive market; non-profit research and education sectors; and government.

Founded in 1993, ZERO-G is led by a world-class team of veteran astronauts and experienced business leaders. The company was co-founded by X PRIZE Chairman and space visionary, Dr. Peter H. Diamandis; veteran astronaut, Dr. Byron K. Lichtenberg, and NASA Engineer Ray Cronise. The team spent more than a decade working to bring the marvel of weightless flight to the public.

Since launching ZERO-G in September 2004, the company has conducted more than 200 weightless flights and flown over 6,000 members of the public, including celebrities and media personalities, corporate charters, science and math teachers, and individuals age eight to 93.

ZERO-G operates under the highest safety standards as set by the FAA (Part-121) with its partner Amerijet International Cargo of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Aircraft operations take place under the same regulations set for large commercial passenger airliners. For more information on the company and the ZERO-G WEIGHTLESS LAB, please visit www.gozerog.com.

A report on the Northrop Grumman program that sponsors ZERO-G flights for science teachers: Teachers Defy Gravity to Gain Students’ Interest - NYTimes.com.

Geoffrey Bergen of Whisconier Middle School in Brookfield, Conn., a teacher on the flight, said traditional teaching methods struggled to hold students’ interest in the age of video games and fast-paced technology. “It’s really hard to teach out of a textbook when you consider the world we live in,” Mr. Bergen said. The zero-gravity flight, he said, “gives you a new tool for Newton’s laws.”

Seeing their teachers performing astronautlike feats, the students, he added, “certainly are engaged.”

After the flight, Adrienne Manzone, a teacher at Captain Nathan Hale School in Coventry, Conn., beamed. “My coolness factor will go up 100 percent,” she said.

Get a discount weightlessness experience on a ZERO-G aircraft this Saturday in Washington D.C.: $3,500 for the Astronaut Experience with Zero-G on October 3 | Groupon Washington DC (via twitter.com/Pomerantz).

And on the ZERO-G home page, they are also offering

ZERO-G Lite: Experience the introductory ZERO-G Experience - ZERO-G Lite! On November 7th you could enjoy 5 micro-gravity parabolas at a reduced rate.

Update: I see that ZERO-G will also fly a group of DC area teachers on Friday and last Tuesday they flew teachers from Northeastern states all for the Northrop Grumman - Weightless Flights of Discovery program:
/-- Video - Teachers experience going weightless - The Advocate - Sept.30.09
/-- 3, 2, 1, Take Off -- Teachers Defy Gravity to Inspire the Next Generation of Scientists and Engineers as Part of the Northrop Grumman Foundation Weightless Flights of Discovery: Students Throughout Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island to Receive the Message That Science is Cool From Their Teachers' Microgravity Experience - Northrop Grumman - Sept.29.09.

ZERO G begins its first NASA parabolic microgravity research flights today: Space Florida and NASA to Test New Space Experiment Rack On September 9-12 ZERO-G Flights - Space Florida - Sept.8.08 (via Parabolic Arc).

Space Florida funded development of a rack system to hold two standard Space Shuttle mid-deck lockers, each of which will contain equipment for particular experiments or technology tests. Fastrack will be used on parabolic flights and is also intended for use on commercial suborbital spaceflight vehicles.

Uh-oh, if this gets around, pretty soon kids everywhere will insist on doing it! Ecuador boy sets zero-G flight record - physorg. ;-)

I see that ZERO-G, in fact, allows kids as young as 8 to fly if they have an adult with them.

This is good news both for ZERO-G and for the NewSpace goal of convincing NASA to move to commercial services where appropriate : NASA Awards Contract for Microgravity Aircraft Services - NASA/SpaceRef - Jan.2.08 (via NASA Watch).

It will be very interesting to see if ZERO-G gets a contract for NASA micro-gravity flights. Mr. Geveden certainly says some good things about NASA needing to encourage development of commercial spaceflight related industries: Microgravity Flight Procurement: Remarks by Rex Geveden - Launchspace.com - May.15.07.

More about Hawking's flight:
* Hawking Goes Zero- Planetary News | The Planetary Society - Apr.27.07 - lengthy account by A.J.S. Rayl
* Inflight video at NASAWatch
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ZERO-G services may be good enough for Hawking but not for NASA:
* NASA Releases RFP For Microgravity Services - NASA Watch
* NASA GRC Solicitation: Microgravity Aircraft Services - RFP Release - SpaceRef - Apr.27.07

Alan Boyle puts Hawking's ZERO-G flight into the broader context of NewSpace development: The next steps to space - Cosmic Log - Apr.27.07.

The ZERO-G home page has several pictures of Hawking during the flight.

They also posted this news release: Professor Stephen Hawking Experiences the Freedom of Weightlessness During Historic Zero- Gravity Flight Out of Kennedy Space Center: Flight Raises More Than $144,000 for Charitable Organizations Serving Children, the Disabled, and Science and Space: Momentous Flight Sponsored by Space Florida and The Sharper Image - ZERO-G (pdf)

William Harwood writes about the flight: Hawking enjoys zero G - Spaceflight Now - Apr.26.07. See also links to several more articles about the flight at Spacetoday.net.

Hawking's flight went extremely well. They did more parabolas than planned because he was having such a good time:
* Hawking goes zero-G:"Space, here I come" : World-famous physicist takes eight turns on weightless roller-coaster jet - MSNBC.com
* Stephen Hawking gets taste of zero gravity - New Scientist
* Hawking takes zero-gravity flight - BBC

This is a great publicity boost for entrepreneurial spaceflight enterprises aimed at the general consumer. (Yes, of course, flying parabolas is not actual spaceflight but it does provide a space-like experience for brief periods and it is marketed as such.) Diamandis and the other co-founders of ZERO-G spent over a decade slogging through FAA regulations and other difficulties to get the business going. This must be an especially satisfying day for them.

Hawking is keen to do a suborbital flight and this moves him closer to that goal. However, I still wonder if his doctors will clear him for a flight in which he would have to withstand very high Gs during re-entry. I expect that with Hawking on board, Virgin Galactic would fly SpaceShipTwo to a lower altitude so as to come in below the 7Gs that has been reported as the expected max load for the SS2. However, even 4 or 5Gs seem a lot for someone in his condition.

Alan Boyle is in Florida to cover Stephen Hawking's flight on a ZERO-G plane today. He says he will be posting updates on his Cosmic Log site throughout the day.

Taylor Dinerman offers a nice perspective on the event: The Bearable Lightness of Being: Scientific heavyweight Stephen Hawking experiences weightlessness - Wall Street Journal - Apr.26.07

[Update: Rand Simberg offers a quick tutorial on parabolic flights: Dr. Hawking's Excellent Adventure - Transterrestrial Musings.]

Someone is paying $75k to have dinner with Stephen Hawking and go with him on his Zero-G flight: Flying high with Stephen Hawking - Dispatches from the Final Frontier - Mar.26.07
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Zero-G plans to set up its main base in Las Vegas: Outer-space thrills coming to Vegas: Zero Gravity Group will sweep you off your feet -- if you've got the bucks - Las Vegas Business Press - Mar.26.07

The Starlight Starbright Children’s Foundation organization sent me this announcement:

Experience history in the making with an amazing opportunity to join Professor Stephen Hawking, the world-renowned physicist and expert on gravity, as he realizes his life-long dream of floating weightless aboard a specially modified plane known as The ZERO-G Experience™ on April 26, 2007 launching from the Kennedy Space Center in Central Florida.

The experience will be auctioned on eBay from March 16th through March 26th. All proceeds raised through this auction will benefit Starlight Starbright Children's Foundation.

The once-in-a-lifetime auction package includes two tickets aboard the Zero-G, zero-gravity flight with Hawking as well as a dinner and lecture with Hawking. Hotel accommodations for three nights are provided through JW Marriott Hotel Grande Lakes in Orlando, Florida.

Visit www.ebay.com/flywithhawking and get bidding!

For more information on the Zero Gravity Corporation visit www.GoZeroG.com. For more information on Starlight Starbright Children’s Foundation visit Starlight Starbright.

Zero Gravity Corp. has now added Las Vegas to the locations where passengers can get rides on its aircraft to experience weightlessness : Las Vegas Welcomes Its Most Unique Attraction Yet: Weightless Flights by Zero Gravity Corporation: ZERO-G, a Space Entertainment and Tourism Company, Will Launch Regular Public Flights From Las Vegas Beginning April 21 - Zero-G/Marketwire - Mar.5.07

So will NASA finally contract out some of its micro-gravity parabolic flying to Zero-G or keep it in house? NASA Microgravity Aircraft Services Contract - Launchspace.com - Jan.10.07