Virgin Galactic CEO Branson Opens First Commercial Spaceport - PC Magazine

Virgin Galactic is the arm of Virgin Group that is intended to develop commercial space travel. This week, the company's chief, Sir Richard Branson celebrated the completion of Spaceport America, the first commercial purpose-built space port in Upham, N.M.

The spaceport includes a two-mile long runway called the "Governor BIll Richardson Spaceway." It's 42 inches thick and can support every existing type of space craft currently in existence.

"New Mexico is not only helping to launch the commercial spaceflight industry, but we are launching new jobs and opportunities for the people of southern N.M.," Gov. Richardson said in a press release.

The runway was dedicated in a celebration that included Branson, Richardson, about 30 of 380 Virgin Galactic future astronauts who got to see Virgin Galactic's WhiteKnightTwo jet carry the SpaceShip Two in a landing and flyover. The future astronauts are those who have already paid or put down a deposit for the $200,00 trip, a Reuters report said. The company already has deposits for more than $50 million.

"The last few weeks have been some of the most exciting in Virgin Galactic's development," Branson said in the release. "Our spaceship is flying beautifully and will soon be making powered flights, propelled by our new hybrid rocket motor, which is also making excellent progress in its own test program."

Branson said that he plans to be taking passengers into space in nine to 18 months.

President Barack Obama recently signed the NASA Authorization Act of 2010 into effect. It's a bill that appropriates $58.4 billion for NASA programs over the next three years and gives an additional flight to the space shuttle fleet.

View the original article here

Branson's Virgin Galactic Completes First Solo Space Flight - PC Magazine

Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic on Sunday completed its first manned free flight of a spaceship intended to eventually take customers on commercial space flights.

SpaceShipTwo, also known as the VSS Enterprise, was piloted by Pete Siebold and Mike Alsbury. Virgin Galactic was testing whether the spaceship could successfully release from its mothership and glide back to Earth. The ship did indeed release at 45,000 feet and land safely at Mojave Air and Space Port in California.

The mothership, named the WhiteKnightTwo, had flown 40 times prior to Sunday's free flight, including four trips during which the VSS Enterprise was attached. On July 15, Virgin Galactic flew for the first time with a crew on board.

"The VSS Enterprise was a real joy to fly, especially when one considers the fact that the vehicle has been designed not only to be a Mach 3.5 spaceship capable of going into space but also one of the worlds highest altitude gliders," Siebold said in a statement.

Virgin Galactic space flights are the brainchild of Branson, who heads up the Virgin empire.

"This was one of the most exciting days in the whole history of Virgin," Branson said in a statement. "For the first time since we seriously began the project in 2004, I watched the world's first manned commercial spaceship landing on the runway at Mojave Air and Space Port and it was a great moment. Now, the sky is no longer the limit and we will begin the process of pushing beyond to the final frontier of space itself over the next year."

A seat on Branson's spaceship will cost $200,000 per person, with refundable deposits starting at $20,000. There is interest, however. Virgin Galactic has managed to sell 700 seats thus far.

In September, Boeing announced that it is partnering with Virginia-based Space Adventures to sell commercial space flights. The CST-100 spacecraft can fit seven people, and is expected to be operational by 2015.

View the original article here