Stephen Hawking will fly weightless onthe ZERO-G Experiment on April 26, 2007. (Xinhua/ReutersPhoto)

PhotoGallery>>>BEIJING, April 26 (Xinhuanet) -- Steven Hawking, a world famous astrophysicist and the author of the bestselling "A Brief History of Time", expects to experience the blissful feeling of weighlessness as he goes on a "zero-gravity" flight Thursday aboard a refitted jet.

"For someone like me whose muscles don't work very well, it will be bliss to be weightless," Hawkingsaid in an interview Tuesday.

This flight is offered by Zero Gravity Corporation, a Florida-based space tourism and entertainment company. Zero Gravity Corporation uses a modified Boeing 727 jet to deliver the feeling of weightlessness to customers. The jet will climbs to about 9,000 metres at a sharp angle and then plunges 2,700 meters in 25 seconds over the Atlantic Ocean, after it leaves Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Normally, the plane conducts 10 to 15 plunges for its passengers who pay 3,750 U.S. dollars for the ride. However, On Hawking's trip, the jet will make a single plunge, and the fee has been waived for him. Other plunges will be made only after doctors and nurses who are accompanying the astrophysicist on the ride have made sure that he does not feel uncomfortable.

"We consider ... having him weightless for 25 seconds is a successful mission," said Peter Diamandis, the chairman and CEO of Zero Gravity. "If we do more than one, fantastic."

During the trip, Hawking will not have his wheelchair and computer which he usesfor communications with him on the jet, but his assistant will bring a laptop in case he wants to communicate beyond facial expressions.

"I hope it goes OK," Hawking said. "But there's always a chance things can go wrong."

(Agencies)

Stephen Hawking, the British physicistand best-selling author famed for his work on time and space theory whileconfined to a wheelchair, answers questions during an interview inOrlando, Florida April 25, 2007. Hawking will fly weightless on the ZERO-GExperiment on April 26, 2007, the flight will take off from the ShuttleLanding Facility at the Kennedy Space Center. (Xinhua/ReutersPhoto)