Virgin Galactic sir Richard Branson has said it is ready to begin space tourist flights. According to the latest announced plans, the company will try to carry out the first commercial launches before the end of 2018.
Most recently, Virgin Galactic has tested the system reverse-entry over Aerospace center “Mojave”. Before that, last year, the company completed the first manned test flight of the new suborbital spaceship, the VSS Unity. Both tests for Virgin Galactic was successful and added to her optimism on the part of the implementation of the following plans. This optimism at the meeting of the Subcommittee of the Senate Commerce and trade decided to share the Executive Director of Galactic Ventures and former chief of staff of NASA, George Whitesides.
Six passengers and two pilots – that will crew the spacecraft, which will deliver people to a height 100 kilometers above the Earth. When they reached the desired height, people in a few minutes will be able to experience the effects of microgravity, as well as stunning views of Earth. The pleasure, however, is not cheap. The ticket price for this trip will be $ 250,000 per person.
Space race 2.0
Virgin is not the only one who wants to do space tourism. Jeff Bezos, owner Amazon.com also looking for fame in the market of this sector and therefore created an initiative called Blue Origin. The company’s customers in the same height as in the case of the spacecraft for Virgin Galactic, will be transported with the spacecraft New Shepard. Bezos hopes to be the first commercial flights for his company also will begin next year.
Elon Musk with his SpaceX also expressed interest in commercial space travel. The company has developed a spacecraft Dragon V2, capable of lifting on Board up to 7 passengers. Moreover, SpaceX is aiming much higher, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic. She also plans to send people into space, but this time we are talking about the whole flying to the moon. And again, until the end of next year.
It is obvious that we can expect a new round of space race. However, this time to compete in a greater degree will not state, but private companies. First start West. I would like to believe that later joined and the organization of the rest of the world.
In the future privatization of space travel will help to support further scientific research, increase interest in further space exploration and new innovative developments that will appear on the competition, will simplify and make much safer and cheaper than such adventures are for ordinary people.
The head of Virgin Galactic: we’re almost ready to start commercial space flights
Nikolai Khizhnyak