operation-immortality posts

He's doing what few men and women have done; the creator of the Ultima game series is now in orbit around the Earth. Richard "Lord British" Garriott was in a Soyuz rocket that launched from the Baikonur space center in Russia early this morning to be come the latest "space tourist". Garriott paid $30 million to the Space Adventures group for the journey.

Garriott's father, Owen Garriott, was a former NASA astronaut and he saw his son lift off into space today. It's the first time in history that a son has followed his father into space. Garriott is now headed for the International Space Station and will dock with the station on Tuesday where he will perfore several experiments. He will also leave behind a hard drive with lots of digital DNA patterns from people as part of Operation Immortality, which has been promoted by his current employer NCsoft. He is scheduled to spend a total of 10 days in orbit.

Very soon, famed game designer Richard Garriott will be launched into space -- yes in sanctioned rocket ship. Famously known for creating the Ultima series, Garriott's fascination with space came at a young age and on October 12 he will partake in an ... interesting mission beyond our planet to fulfill his dreams. Operation Immortality is bringing data from Earth's greatest achievements into space so our legacy may live on forever. Among the important data? The genetic codes of such world renowned people as news host Stephen Colbert and 2008 Playboy Cyber Girl of the Year, Jo Garcia.

Wait. What? Really? Anyway ... since space travel is considered pretty dangerous -- what with the whole rocket thing -- Razer has created a site where anyone from around the internet can send a message of well wished to Garriott before his shuttle leaves on October 12. For every message sent from October 1 until October 12, Razer will donate one-quarter (of a dollar) to the Challenger Learning Center, which seeks to enhance space education for children.

Those who participate also have a chance to win Razer branded gear. Three lucky winners will walk away with a Razer Lachesis mouse and a Razer Destructor mouse pad each, personally autographed by Richard. Twenty winners will also each receive a Razer Moray, Razer's newly launched in-ear noise canceling gaming earphone.

Send in those messages and lets get some money in a great program for kids.

The greatest political pundit of all time, Stephen Colbert, may hate bears but he loves himself. So much so, in fact, that Colbert has decided to have his digital DNA placed in the "Immortality Drive" that game designer Richard "Lord British" Garriott will take into space later this fall.

The host of Comedy Central's The Colbert Report will join a number of other people to have their DNA digitzed and placed in a special drive that Garriott will take to the International Space Station as part of his mission that he paid $30 million to take. Operation Immortality is also a way to promote Garriott's sci-fi MMO Tabula Rasa from publisher NCsoft. Now if we can only get a bear's DNA to be added to the drive . . . .

Late last month NCsoft announced that players of their sci-fi MMO Tabula Rasa could win a chance to have their DNA shot into space alongside the game's creator Richard "Lord British" Garriott when he travels to the International Space Station this fall. Now NCsoft is offering another way for one person to have their DNA join "Operation Immortality."

That effort is a special eBay auction that is running now and will close on August 20. The person with the winning bid will have his or her DNA digitized and then placed on the "Immortality Drive" which Garriott will take into space and leave on the Internatiol Space Station. There's another eBay auction where the winning bidder will have a Tabula Rasa character named after him or her. Proceeds from the auctions will be sent to Planet Make-Over, a non-profit organization that is aiming to reverse the effects of global warming.