CityNews – Mink Pirada Techavijit will be the first Thai citizen headed to space next year. The satellite control engineer won the free trip after taking part in a competition organized last year by AXE Apollo body spray in collaboration with Space Expedition Corporation (SXC). She will be able to explore space for six minutes and will be viewing earth from a distance of 100 kilometres.
The Bangkok-based astronaut went through a year of rigorous training and physical, mental and writing tests to win this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The training at the AXE Apollo Space Academy started with 107 contestants which were eventually reduced to 22, Techavijit being one of the lucky chosen space explorers. The participants come from across the globe including the United States, South Africa, China and Japan.
The price for a ticket to space usually costs US$100,000 and SXC have reportedly sold 175 tickets up to now.
Ms Techavijit works for the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency established in Bangkok. It operates satellites and is seeking to become the leading space agency in South-East Asia.