FLY ME TO THE MOON: ASU students react to SpaceX lunar flight announcement

It's something humanity has not done for decades, and if successful, it will be the first mission of its kind to be done by a private company.

On Monday, space transport provider SpaceX announced it is taking two private citizens on a trip around the moon next year. The identity of the two individuals were not announced, but they will reportedly undergo the same kind of training as astronauts, and both have reportedly paid a "significant deposit" to go on the trip.

The two individuals may or may not be students or graduates of Arizona State University, but students at ASU were smiling from ear to ear Monday, as word of the would-be mission spread.

"They say money can't buy happiness but hey, if they can buy a trip to the moon, that's good enough for me," said ASU Junior Eric Laughlin.

The planned lunar mission is not the same as the "Space Race" between the Soviets and the U.S. in the 1960s, but news of the mission still caught many students' attention. People were talking about the rebirth of space interest.

"Being that our phones have way more technology than what it took to get the rockets and the computers to get to the moon, it's about time we increase our technology and get back there," said ASU Junior Kelsie Crawford.

"I've heard of the Apollo Missions before I was born, and all these years later to plan to actually do it again, it's just insane," said ASU graduate student Sanjwe Rabindrandijn.

The phrase "Space: the Final Frontier" may be more popularly associated with the Star Trek series in this day and age, but some hope the mission will reinvigorate interest in the real final frontier that lies beyond Earth's atmosphere.

"Knowing that the Space Race back in the 60s, 70s wasn't the last hurrah for us is absolutely inspiring," said Laughlin.