From virtual worlds to the Mariana Trench, Richard Garriott defines the modern explorer

History · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Richard Garriott is a pioneer of computer role-playing games who transformed his gaming fortune into a career as a private astronaut. Beyond his digital legacy, he has claimed private ownership of lunar territory, visited the deepest point on Earth, and smuggled Star Trek history into orbit.

Born in 1961 to a NASA astronaut, Garriott’s early life was defined by a dream of spaceflight that was initially thwarted by eyesight issues at age 13. He pivoted to programming, creating the influential Ultima series and coining the term avatar in 1985 to emphasize player accountability. His success in the industry, including the sale of Origin Systems to Electronic Arts for $30 million in 1992, eventually provided the capital to pursue his original ambition.

Garriott’s journey to space was marked by persistence. After losing a seat to Dennis Tito in 2001, he underwent surgery to remove a liver hemangioma to qualify for flight. In 2008, he became the first second-generation American astronaut to reach the International Space Station. While there, he filmed the first fictional movie in space, Apogee of Fear, and secretly stowed away the ashes of actor James Doohan, which have since orbited the Earth over 70,000 times.

His exploration extends beyond the atmosphere. In 1993, he purchased the Soviet-era Lunokhod 2 rover and its lander at auction, asserting a unique claim to private ownership of extraterrestrial territory based on the vehicle's continued utility in laser-ranging experiments. In 2021, he reached the bottom of the Mariana Trench, becoming the only person to hold records for both high-altitude space travel and extreme deep-sea exploration. Today, as president of The Explorers Club, Garriott continues to bridge the gap between digital simulation and physical discovery.

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