Elon Musk announces the first passenger for SpaceX's Moon trip

SpaceX has been talking plans to send tourists around the Moon since early 2017. Well, what sounds like science fiction might soon be a reality, as Elon Musk announced the company's first passenger for the Moon trip.

Yusaku Maezawa, 42, will be the first passenger to into space through SpaceX's BFR. Maezawa is a Japanese billionaire and founder of online fashion mall Zozotown. Musk previously hinted the first person to go on this trip might be Japanese.

Maezawa has a reputation of shelling out big bucks. He once dropped over $110 million (£84 million, AU$154 million) on a painting by Jean-Michel Basquiat in 2017.

"I could not pass up this opportunity to see the moon up close," Maezawa said. He said he has bought all the available seats for the BFR lunar mission and plans to invite other artists from around the world for the trip. The mission is slated to take flight in 2023.
Maezawa plans on inviting artists from different disciplines including literature, film, visual arts, architecture and fashion. He will ask them to create works based on their experience as a part of the #dearMoon project.

Space live-streamed the news after teasing the announcement few days ago and calling it "an important step toward enabling access for everyday people who dream of traveling to space."

No one has been to the Moon after the Apollo missions ended in the 70's, but now, SpaceX is taking reservations. Elon Musk, said last year that we would see two humans take a trip to the Moon at some point in 2018, but that isn't happening. Now, it's anticipated that it can occur on the LA-built BFR, instead of a Falcon Heavy carrying a Dragon capsule.

Musk also said that the spaceship part of BFR will be ready for use for "short hopper flights" until next year and test flights in next three to four years. The mission will take four to five days and will undergo uncrewed tests before sending a person out.