LOS ANGELES - A self-taught rocket scientist has blasted himself high into the California sky using a steam-powered contraption he built in his garage, the first step in his long-term aim of proving the Earth is flat. “Mad” Mike Hughes propelled himself 571 meters into the air above the vast Mojave desert in the homemade rocket before deploying his parachute and landing back to Earth with a bump. The madcap 61-year-old limo-driver-turned-daredevil was visibly dazed as he was carefully lifted from his seat and was checked over by paramedics as he lay exhausted on the ground following a hard landing which damaged the front of his rocket. “Am I glad I did it? Yeah. I guess,” he said. “I'll feel it in the morning. I won't be able to get out of bed. At least I can go home and have dinner and see my cats tonight.” The Flat-Earther, who has spent around $20,000 pursuing his rocket dream since 2016, admitted he was “relieved” to have finally achieved his goal following several aborted attempts and ridicule from some quarters when his plan captured the attention of the world’s media last year. Hughes has the support of the flat-Earth community, who helped fund the mission, and eventually wants to build a "Rockoon," - a rocket that is carried into the atmosphere by a gas-filled balloon - to take him about 68 miles up so he can photograph the planet from space. - AP