Japanese billionaire to take private flight to the moon with guests

Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa said Monday that he plans to blast off on the first-ever private commercial trip around the moon and will invite six to eight artists, architects, designers and other creative people on the weeklong journey “to inspire the dreamer in all of us.” The SpaceX Big Falcon Rocket is scheduled to make the trip in 2023, company founder Elon Musk announced at an event Monday at its headquarters near Los Angeles. Musk said the entrepreneur, founder of Japan's largest retail website and one the country's richest people, will pay “a lot of money” for the trip, but declined to disclose the exact amount. Maezawa came to SpaceX with the idea for the group flight, Musk said. Maezawa didn't immediately say who will be on his guest list for the spaceflight, but in response to a question from a reporter he said he'd consider inviting Musk.