Singer Sarah Brightman Begins Training in Russia for Journey to Space

British singer Sarah Brightman began her training program to fly to the International Space Station (ISS) at the Russian the Cosmonauts Training Center. She is expected to become the eighth space tourist to visit the ISS.

MOSCOW, January 19 (Sputnik) — Popular British singer Sarah Brightman, who plans to take a 10-day trip to the International Space Station in Autumn 2015, arrived back at the Russian Cosmonauts Training Center in Star City and began training, spokeswoman for Roscosmos Irina Zubareva told RIA Novosti.

"Sarah Brightman came back and proceeded to flight training at the Cosmonauts Training Center," Zubareva said.

Brightman, 54, is expected to become the eighth space tourist to visit the ISS. The singer is scheduled to fly to space within the expedition ISS-45/46 crew accompanied by Russian cosmonaut Sergei Volkov and ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen.

Japanese Satoshi Takamatsu will be Brightman’s stand-by. He could travel to the International Space Station after Brightman, in 2017-2018.

Brightman, the UNESCO Artist for Peace, announced her plan to fly to space back in 2012.

Before her world tour kicked off, she passed a number of tests at a medical institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences confirming that she meets the basic physical requirements for space travel. Now she will have to pass another test, because the medical approval is valid only for a year.

Nearly 40 days before the blast-off, the singer and the rest of the crew are set to pass the main medical exam.

Sarah Brightman would become the second female space tourist in the world, after Iranian-American engineer Anousheh Ansari.

Post by Sarah Brightman.