Sir Richard Branson is set to travel to outer space in 2014 on Virgin Galactic’s first commercial spaceflight, and all of us on Earth will get to watch the adventure.

Sir Richard has admitted that he didn’t have a clue about space travel, or even how he would raise the money to start the business when he registered the name “Virgin Galactic”.

“It was 10 years ago and I knew nothing about space travel or building rockets,” he told The Telegraph (UK newspaper) at the One Young World summit in Johannesburg. “I just said, ‘I’m going to find someone who can build us a rocket and send people into space’.”

“Of course, when you’ve already had some successes behind you, it’s much easier to raise the money to make it happen,” he added.

Sir Richard confirmed that Virgin Galactic is now just three months away from having a fully-functioning rocket that is capable of taking passengers into orbit. “It’s proof that if you set yourself any challenge, you can achieve it,” he said. “I’ve been lucky to learn that most things are possible.”

And now, NBC has revealed it will televise the historic flight on Today next year. Exact dates for the 3-hour live broadcast depend on flight tests. However, the flight and the broadcast are tentatively slated for August 2014, Today reports.

“In this first chapter of commercial space travel, we will help make space accessible and inspire countless more people to join us in the pursuit of space exploration and science innovation,” Branson said the statement.

The special, hosted by Matt Lauer and Savannah Guthrie, will capture the Branson family’s trip. His two children, 31-year-old Holly and 28-year-old Sam, will be on board.

Leading up to the trip, NBC News’ Peacock Productions will document the pre-flight prep work and journey on various NBCUniversal brands, including MSNBC, CNBC, SYFY, The Weather Channel and NBCNews.com, as part of a larger deal between the media giant and Branson’s flight company.

On a Today show segment (watch, above) announcing the TV special, Branson said nearly 700 people have already purchased tickets for future flights. Among those lined up to blast off are Justin Bieber and Ashton Kutcher. Earlier this week, Lady Gaga announced she’d give a performance in space on a 2015 Virgin Galactic flight.

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Filed under: Space Tourism