To date, Space Adventures is the only company in the world to have sent privately funded tourists into space, having sent eight people so far although the cost is around $20million. The companies suborbital space flight programme in collaboration with Armadillo Aerospace aims to send people 62 miles high at a cost of $102,000 which gives the world it's first benchmark in reducing costs for space travel.
Commercial Space Travel
Mankind is witnessing the arrival of the most challenging industry in it's history: commercial space travel. Here we track the progress and development of service providers in this industry as space travel is brought day by day to more and more consumers around the world.
Sunday 12 December 2010
Thursday 9 December 2010
Richard Branson Virgin Galactic trailer
Richard Branson's fascinating commentary on how he has arrived at the doorstep of bringing space travel to the masses from humble yet ambitious roots in England.
Tuesday 7 December 2010
The pioneering Scaled Composites products delivering space travel
Virgin Galactic lead the world in the pursuit of affordable space travel. The hardware behind the vision is developed and manufactured by a company called Scaled Composites in Mojave, California. Here is an introduction to the vehicles that will be used by Virgin Galactic to deliver the first commercially viable space flights to the consumer.
Virgin Mothership Eve
Codenamed Whiteknight Two, this spacecraft is the launch platform for the space craft itself. Named after the founder, Sir Richard Branson's mother, Eve is the largest all carbon composite aviation vehicle built and the most fuel efficient of it's size. Virgin Galactic say that it has a unique capability to carry heavy payload (around35,000lbs) to high altitude (around 50,000ft) and a range of over 2,000 nautical miles.
Spaceship Two
The precursor to Spaceship Two was Spaceship One, the winner of the coveted "X" Prize. Powered by a hybrid rocket motor which offers important safety and environmental advantages over liquid or solid systems, Spaceship Two is around twice the size of Spaceship One and capable of carrying six passengers and two pilots. Each passenger gets the same seating position with an overhead window and a side window.
Saturday 27 November 2010
Virgin Galactic Spaceport America in New Mexico
This video gives an insight into the spaceport that will make it possible for take off and landings of Virgin Galactic's space vehicles.
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