Japanese Billionaire buys STARSHIP for circum-lunar flight

originally posted by: billxam
a reply to: Lysergic

It only 'splodes after it lands all crooked and whatnot with fires and flames and smoke. I can see the consipiracy theories now "Japanese billionare in bunker on moon, DIDN'T return, nobody's seen him!"

There's the story of the Ancient Chinese man Wan Hu:

"Early in the sixteenth century, Wan decided to take advantage of China's advanced rocket and fireworks technology to launch himself into outer space. He supposedly had a chair built with forty-seven rockets attached. On the day of lift-off, Wan, splendidly attired, climbed into his rocket chair and forty seven servants lit the fuses and then hastily ran for cover. There was a huge explosion. When the smoke cleared, Wan and the chair were gone, and was said never to have been seen again."

Urban myth is that he was never seen again because he was launched into space. The real story (if this were a true story) was that he likely blew to bits. There is a crater on the far side of the moon named in his honor.