(Photo: Pexels/Jared Krahn)
A Japanese billionaire who booked a flight with SpaceX's Starship abandoned his dearMoon project because it remains unclear when the spacecraft would be ready.
Yusaku Maezawa Cancels dearMoon Project
Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa had previously intended to board SpaceX's Starship and fly eight artists around the Moon. However, Maezawa announced that he had already canceled the trip since Starship was still under construction and the travel had already been postponed indefinitely.
The news was shared on Friday by the flight's X account, dearMoon. In the announcement, dearMoon said it was "unfortunate" that they had to cancel what was supposed to be the first private circum-lunar flight project. dearMoon thanked everyone who supported the project and apologized to those looking forward, as it would never materialize.
Concerning the cancellation of the dearMoon project, the billionaire also explained in a series of tweets that he assumed the dearMoon would launch by the end of 2023 when he signed the contract in 2018. Apparently, they didn't meet the timeline. However, he acknowledged that it was a "developmental project" and "it is still uncertain as to when Starship can launch." Due to this, the Maezawa decided to cancel the entire project.
"I can't plan my future in this situation, and I feel terrible making the crew members wait longer, hence the difficult decision to cancel at this point in time," he added in another tweet. "I apologize to those who were excited for this project to happen."
The announcement received several comments, with many expressing their disappointment. One user said it was "truly heartbreaking." She suggested that other factors, not just timing, should have been considered because Starship is not a usual rocket. She added that she was sad that a mission many expected to witness was terminated during what was supposed to be the most exciting times for Starship.
Meanwhile, according to others, SpaceX is great at what it does. However, it rarely hits the target when it comes to timelines.
I can’t plan my future in this situation, and I feel terrible making the crew members wait longer, hence the difficult decision to cancel at this point in time.
— Yusaku Maezawa (MZ) (@yousuckMZ) June 1, 2024
I apologize to those who were excited for this project to happen.
About the Terminated dearMoon Project
The dearMoon project was supposed to be the first civilian mission to the Moon. It planned to use Elon Musk's SpaceX for a week-long journey to the Moon and back in 2023.
Maezawa, the crew leader, paid for all the seats aboard the rocket, with several talented individuals joining him for the mission. Among the chosen eight crew members were DJ and producer Steve Aoki (USA), musician TOP (Choi Seung Hyun for Korea), multi-disciplinary creative Yemi A.D. (Czech Republic), photographic artist Rhiannon Adam (Ireland), YouTuber Tim Dodd (USA), photographer Karim Iliya (UK), filmmaker Brendan Hall (USA), and actor Dev D. Joshi (India). There are two backup crew members --snowboarder Kaitlyn Farrington (USA) and dancer Miyu (Japan).
The billionaire entrepreneur said he was thrilled to have those amazing people join him on his journey to the Moon and to see what those artists would bring home following their trip to space. Unfortunately, that will not happen anymore.
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