Space Adventures announced today that, for the first time, it is selling the opportunity to be the backup crew member for one of its Soyuz space tourists. For $3 million, that person would go through the same six-month training program in Russia as Richard Garriott, the company’s next orbital customer; they are particularly interested in someone who can not only afford the training but also “is able to be an active participant in Richard’s mission, to include being featured in a documentary TV series,” according to Space Adventures CEO Eric Anderson. (The press release also points out that Anousheh Ansari was originally training in 2006 as a backup to Daisuke Enomoto, but got to fly when Enomoto suffered some kind of medical problem.) And, yes, that $3 million can be “credited in-full” towards a future orbital or even lunar spaceflight, Anderson added. Time would appear to be of the essence, since Garriott plans to start training in Russia after the first of the year.

An article in The West Australian reports that a Virgin Galactic seat will be auctioned off Saturday night during the Chinese Chamber of Commerce annual ball in Perth. Curiously, the article claims that “Bill Gates, Warren Buffet [sic], Oprah Winfrey, Sir Richard Branson and Donald Trump have already signed up for a space flight”. Branson, of course, has “signed up” for a flight: he owns Virgin Galactic. The other names, though, should be treated with a heavy dose of skepticism. After all, does the Oracle of Omaha strike you as someone who would spend $200K on a suborbital spaceflight? Although perhaps he and Bill could convince Oprah and The Donald to play a round of zero-g bridge…

For a number of years companies like Space Adventures and Incredible Adventures have offered terrestrial analogues to spaceflight, including zero-g airplane flights, high-altitude jet flights, and cosmonaut training. Now another company, G.A.P Adventures, is entering the market, offering a similar suite of experiences. The company, which already offers a wide range of adventure tourism, sees space as a natural extension: “For G.A.P Adventures it was never a question of if we could provide our travellers with the experience of undertaking space travel, but when,” said the company’s CEO, Bruce Poon Tip.