If you have about $250,000 to spare, good news: space tourism is just around the corner for you.
On Monday, Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo completed a successful rocket-powered supersonic flight, pushing the ship into the final phases of testing. SpaceShipTwo (SS2) took off from the Mojave Air and Space Port mated to WhiteKnightTwo (WK2). After a 45-minute flight, travelling to an altitude of 47,000 feet, SS2 was released from WK2. It then launched forward up to 55,000 feet reaching a speed of Mach 1.2. The entire flight lasted about 10 minutes.
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The next stage is to push the speed of SS2 even further. Once all testing is successful, the company plans on having scheduled departures from Spaceport America, the first purpose-built commercial spaceport in the world designed for the public.
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Virgin Galactic is owned by Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group and Abu Dhabi’s aabar InvestmentsPJS.
Want to book a flight? Virgin Galactic Booking
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