Enlarge / Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity is seen at Spaceport America in entrance of the corporate’s iconic headquarters.
SPACEPORT AMERICA, New Mexico—I am standing on a spaceport runway on the ass finish of nowhere. The solar has began to creep over the craggy San Andreas Mountains, illuminating the large, alien spaceship-like constructing right here in New Mexico that Virgin Galactic calls dwelling.
I’ve traveled all this manner in early August to seek out a bit of illumination of my very own. Specifically, I wish to know simply what the heck Virgin Galactic is as much as. Based by Sir Richard Branson some 19 years in the past, the corporate has had a wild trip in its quest to change into the world’s first bona fide area tourism enterprise. Alongside the best way, Virgin Galactic’s inventory soared as excessive as $56 a share, then crashed to now barely above $3. Considered one of its spaceships crashed, too, almost 9 years in the past, killing a take a look at pilot. However now it is transferring ahead in a constructive path.
Afterward Thursday morning, with a surprising rocket blast initiated about 14 km above the New Mexico desert, the corporate accomplished its seventh flight to an altitude of 88 km, above the overwhelming majority of Earth’s environment. Many of the earlier missions have been take a look at flights to push the envelope of the VSS Unity spacecraft’s capabilities. Thursday’s flight, dubbed Galactic 02, was truly the primary time the corporate flew a non-public astronaut into area—and that is the explanation Virgin Galactic exists, in any case.
Learn 35 remaining paragraphs | Feedback
