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Software billionaire home from space

MOSCOW, April 21 (UPI) -- A Russian spacecraft returned to Earth Saturday with a crew that included a software billionaire.

Charles Simonyi and other crew members were well and in high spirits after their three-hour return trip, said Valery Lyndin, a spokesman for the Moscow-based Mission Control.

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The 14th crew of the International Space Station landed their Soyuz spacecraft on the steppes of Kazakhstan, the Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported.

Commander Michael Lopez-Alegria, who is with the U.S.-based NASA, completed five space walks, giving him 10 for his career, which is a U.S. record for space walks.

Simonyi, 58, who is Hungarian, paid nearly $25 million for the two-week space vacation. He made his fortune through his work with computer software, including helping to develop Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel.

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