Space tourist makes safe return
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Simonyi was carried in his chair for medical checks after landing.
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Billionaire space tourist Charles Simonyi and two crew from the
International Space Station (ISS) have safely returned to Earth.
The Soyuz capsule carrying the trio touched down on the steppes of
Kazakhstan at 1631 (1231 GMT).
Mr Simonyi, a Hungarian-born US software engineer, paid $25m (œ12.7m)
for his 10-day stay on the ISS. The 58-year-old is the fifth person to
pay for a trip into space.
On his two-day journey to the ISS Mr Simonyi travelled with two
replacement crew for the space station.
Radiation experiment
 He returned to Earth along with Russian Mikhail Tyurin and US
astronaut Miguel Lopez-Alegria, who have both been on the ISS since
September.
Another US astronaut, Sunita Williams, has remained on board with
newly arrived cosmonauts Fyodor Yurchikhin and Oleg Kotov of Russia. Mr
Simonyi, who amassed a fortune through his work on computer software,
including helping to develop Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel, is the
450th person to enter orbit and, by his own admission, "the first nerd
in space".
Among the cargo he carried with him was a gourmet meal of roast quail
marinated in wine and duck breast, selected by American lifestyle guru
Martha Stewart, a friend of Mr Simonyi.
While on board the space station, Mr Simonyi carried out a series of
experiments including measuring the amount of radiation he was exposed
to during his stay.
The aim was to help to generate an accurate map of the station's
radiation environment.
Mr Simonyi began training for the flight six months ago at the Yuri
Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre in Star City, Russia; and at the
Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
He underwent a gruelling physical programme, including strict medical
tests, to prepare him for the ride to escape the Earth's atmosphere and
his time on board the ISS. His trip was arranged by US-based Space
Adventures.
The firm has previously sent four private explorers to space:
American Dennis Tito in 2001
South African Mark Shuttleworth in 2002
American Greg Olsen in 2005
Iranian-born US businesswoman Anousheh Ansari in September 2006.
BBC
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