Will Go Zero-G This Year; Plans Space Ride In 2009

Being bound to a wheelchair has never held Stephen Hawking back in his quest for scientific truth, as his groundbreaking research on the origins of the universe are known even to those well outside the scientific community. The man who has explained the nature of black holes, and proposed space and time are infinite, is now setting his sights on a trip into space.

Hawking, who celebrated his 65th birthday Monday, told The Daily Telegraph he plans to ride into space in 2009.

To prepare for that excursion, the author of 'A Brief History Of Time' will be a ride this year onboard a converted airliner, flying through a series of parabolic maneuvers to simulate varying degrees of weightlessness. Eventually, Hawking says he hopes to fly onboard one of Virgin Galactic's flights to suborbital space.

The Telegraph reports Virgin founder Sir Richard Branson will cover Hawking's ticket for the ride on SpaceShipTwo, which is scheduled to begin passenger flights within two years.

"Richard is very determined that if we can possibly make this happen, then it should," Virgin Galactic spokesman Stephen Attenborough said.

Last year, Hawking -- who suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, and uses a computer to communicate -- stated humankind needed to go into space to insure its own survival, as the chances of a disaster (natural or manmade) that could destroy the Earth are increasing.

FMI: www.hawking.org.uk/, www.virgingalactic.com