$35 Million Clown

A spacecraft carrying Canadian circus tycoon Guy Laliberte and two crew mates lifted off from the Kazakh steppe on schedule Wednesday headed for the International Space Station.

The Soyuz capsule carrying the Cirque du Soleil founder, U.S. astronaut Jeffrey Williams and Russian cosmonaut Maxim Surayev shed its rocket stages and entered orbit minutes after shooting up from the Baikonur launch facility atop a tower of flame.

Friends and family on the ground waited anxiously and then burst into cheers when an announcement that the ship was in orbit came over the loudspeaker. There were ecstatic hugs, sobs of relief and chants of "Guy! Guy!" They then broke into a rendition of Elton John's "Rocket Man."

They are scheduled to arrive at the International Space Station, orbiting 220 miles above Earth, on Friday.

Laliberte, who paid $35 million for his trip, plans to use it to help publicize the world's growing shortage of clean water. But he's also doing his best to make the serious, risky business of space travel fun: Before the launch, the entertainer donned a bulbous red clown nose, blew kisses to supporters and held both hands over his heart in a mime's show of affection.