There has been a few posts concerned with the funding for such a project. I can conceive of a certain percentage of rich investors needing to "throw" money around to offset their tax liability.
Let me tell you how that works. Your personal money manager comes to you and says "This is your projected tax obligation "now." This could be your tax obligation if you spend X amount of dollars in charitable enterprises.
*Charitable enterprises include this new venture to seek out new worlds and medical breakthroughs. In fact, that is a double charity which involves premium cash back from the government as spending cash for solar heating.
There are always rich investors looking for smart ways to "invest." Who "need" smart ways to give money away. And the need to stoke the fire of curiosity will never leave the human cat -- even if it kills him.
And there will never be a shortage of smart companies whose founding CEO has a vision overlooked by everyone else. And a way to possibly secure riches beyond belief forging new roads and pioneering bold new expeditions.
Who will sign on to these ventures? The curious.
BUT, as a poster has already intimated, this kind of thinking only happens in my head. And select others. It is that certain percentage of a population with this same sort of original thinking that makes them rich. Worked quite well for me. And every year I have to throw a certain amount of money away. At least I can pick and choose the charitable ventures and virgin enterprises.
Note:
*Charitable enterprises is a whole hog.