Yuri Gagarin was the first man in space. Sally Ride was the first woman in space. Dennis Tito was the first tourist in space. And sometime next year, the human race will eclipse another benchmark, with Coco Brown possibly becoming the first porn star in space.

Brown made headlines earlier this year when Space Expedition Corporation, a German company, announced that the retired porn star had signed up to be on one of its first sub-orbital spaceflights in March 2014. Brown, who hasn't starred in an adult film since 2003, says she's quit the industry and is entirely focused on her mission.

"Performing in space isn't something I ever thought about when I was deciding to do this. I just thought, 'Oh my gosh, this is something really cool.' I didn't think 'I'm going to try to have sex in space or perform in space,'" she says.

Brown says the opportunity arose when she was invited to a "space lunch" in Berlin, but she quickly discovered that the meeting was being held to discuss the possibility of space tourism.

(Star Factory PR)

"I thought they were going to be talking about the universe or something with astronomy or whatever, but then they started talking about flights to space," she says. "I spent four months deciding whether or not I wanted to do this. The company called me a few times and finally I decided to do it."

Brown has already completed a zero gravity flight and has begun training in Cape Canaveral. She has several more training missions coming up over the next few weeks. Since agreeing to take the trip, which costs $100,000, Brown says she may be in for more than she bargained for.

"I'm not worried about the fact of actually going to space, but when we come back, NASA wants to do a lot of observations and studies and things," she says. "We're some of the first people who are going to space without a specific job to do, so they were telling us all these [emergency contingency plans] and things like that, that made me wonder, 'Why are they telling us this stuff?' That kind of thing makes me worry."

A spokesperson with NASA says they have not worked with Brown and have no plans to train her or conduct experiments on her when she returns.

"NASA does not fly space tourists and does not train them. Nor is NASA involved in postflight studies and observations," the agency says.

Because she hasn't performed in a decade, Brown says she wasn't ready for the media blitz that has followed the announcement. Perhaps predictably, a lot of media focus has been put on whether she'll make the world's first porno movie filmed in space. That, she says, depends on what type of space suit she's given. "They're always giving us a new suit—I assume the one we use to go to space will be different. I haven't asked about a special suit," she says.

Despite the attention, she says she's focused on being the best astronaut she can be.

"I haven't done a movie since 2003, so when I decided to do this, the thought of performing in space didn't even cross my mind. I have nothing against performing and would do it if the right offer comes along," she says. "But now, my job is to train to be an astronaut."

(Star Factory PR)