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Encyclopedia > Virgin Galactic
Virgin Galactic
Type Private
Founded 2004
Headquarters New Mexico, USA
Key people Richard Branson, Will Whitehorn
Industry Aerospace and space tourism
Products space tourism
Employees 30
Slogan Space is Virgin territory
Website www.virgingalactic.com

Virgin Galactic is a company within Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group, which plans to offer sub-orbital spaceflights and later orbital spaceflights to the paying public. Image File history File links New_Galactic_Logo. ... A private company is a company that is independently owned. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Capital Santa Fe Largest city Albuquerque Area  Ranked 5th  - Total 121,665 sq mi (315,194 km²)  - Width 342 miles (550 km)  - Length 370 miles (595 km)  - % water 0. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, the lead section of this article may need to be expanded. ... Aerospace engineering is the branch of engineering that concerns aircraft, spacecraft, and related topics. ... The curvature of the Earth seen from orbit would be one of the main attractions for tourists paying to go into space Space tourism is the recent phenomenon of space travel by individuals for the purpose of personal pleasure. ... The curvature of the Earth seen from orbit would be one of the main attractions for tourists paying to go into space Space tourism is the recent phenomenon of space travel by individuals for the purpose of personal pleasure. ... For the album by the Kaiser Chiefs see Employment (album) Employment is a contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. ... Look up slogan in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A website (or Web site) is a collection of web pages, images, videos and other digital assets and hosted on a particular domain or subdomain on the World Wide Web. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, the lead section of this article may need to be expanded. ... The Virgin Group Ltd is a group of separately run companies that each use Virgin brand of English celebrity business tycoon Sir Richard Branson. ... A sub-orbital spaceflight (or sub-orbital flight) is a spaceflight that does not involve putting a vehicle into orbit. ... An orbital spaceflight (or orbital flight) in the general sense is a spaceflight where the trajectory of a spacecraft reaches the height of, and through having an appropriate velocity enters into, orbit around an astronomical body. ...

Contents

Mission

Virgin Galactic plans to fly 500 passengers a year at about US$200,000 each, to an altitude of slightly over 100 km, with a total weightless time of 6 minutes.[1][2] The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ... Astronauts on the International Space Station display an example of weightlessness. ...


Only about 500 people have been above the arbitrary defined boundary of space at 100 km and gained their astronaut wings since spaceflight began in the 1960s. Nearly all of these spaceflights have been orbital. An Astronaut Badge is a United States, awarded to military aviation pilots who have completed Astronaut training with NASA and performed a successful space flight. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from January 1, 1960 to December 31, 1969, inclusive. ...


Space tourism companies such as Virgin Galactic would increase the number of people flying higher than the defined boundary of space, adding thousands of new "astronauts". Today, the only possible way for private citizens to reach an altitude over 100 km and therefore cross the defined space boundary is through commercial orbital spaceflights provided by the Russian Space Agency, costing roughly US$20 million for a six-day flight.[3] The Russian Federal Space Agency, formerly the Russian Aviation and Space Agency (RKA) (in Russian: Российское авиационно-космическое аге&#1085...


Spacecraft

Richard Branson (right) presents the Govenor of New Mexico Bill Richardson with a scale model of Virgin SpaceShip (VSS) aka SpaceShipTwo
Richard Branson (right) presents the Govenor of New Mexico Bill Richardson with a scale model of Virgin SpaceShip (VSS) aka SpaceShipTwo

Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (2000x1472, 2589 KB) http://www. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (2000x1472, 2589 KB) http://www. ... William Blaine Bill Richardson (born November 15, 1947) is an American politician and a member of the Democratic Party. ...

Development of SpaceShipTwo

After talks throughout 2004, on September 24, 2004 Virgin Galactic signed a deal worth up to US$21 million with Mojave Aerospace Ventures to license the intellectual property behind the Tier One project for purposes of space tourism. The deal was announced by Branson and Burt Rutan on September 27, 2004 at the Royal Aeronautical Society in London. The initial plan is for Rutan to design and build five suborbital tourist craft based on a scaled-up version of SpaceShipOne. Construction began in 2005, with six months of intensive testing (comprising at least 50-100 test flights) planned for 2007. Actual spaceflights for ordinary citizens are expected to begin on the SpaceShipTwo VSS Enterprise in Upham, New Mexico in 2009.[4][5] 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... September 24 is the 267th day of the year (268th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Mojave Aerospace Ventures (MAV) is a company founded by Paul Allen and Burt Rutan to handle the commercial spinoffs from the Tier One project. ... For the 2006 film, see Intellectual Property (movie). ... Tier One is Scaled Composites program of suborbital human spaceflight using the reusable spacecraft SpaceShipOne and its launcher White Knight. ... The curvature of the Earth seen from orbit would be one of the main attractions for tourists paying to go into space Space tourism is the recent phenomenon of space travel by individuals for the purpose of personal pleasure. ... Elbert Leander Burt Rutan (born June 17, 1943 in Estacada, Oregon) is an American aerospace engineer noted for his originality in designing light, strong, unusual-looking, energy-efficient aircraft. ... September 27 is the 270th day of the year (271st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Founded in 1866 The Royal Aeronautical Society is the worlds leading authority on aviation. ... A sub-orbital spaceflight (or sub-orbital flight) is a spaceflight that does not involve putting a vehicle into orbit. ... SpaceShipOne is small, having a three-person cabin and short but wide wings. ... SpaceShipTwo is a suborbital spaceplane currently under development by The Spaceship Company, a joint venture between Scaled Composites and Sir Richard Bransons Virgin Group of the UK, as part of the Tier 1b program. ... The VSS Enterprise is the first commercial spaceship being constructed by Virgin Galactic, based on the design of SpaceShipOne. ... Upham New Mexico is the planned site for the Southwest Regional Spaceport. ... 2009 (MMIX) will be a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...


General overview of the spacecraft flights

It is planned that the spacecraft are to be robust and affordable enough to take paying passengers. Initially planned to be a piloted craft accommodating five passengers, it is now projected to be a six passenger, two pilot craft.[1] It is planned to make suborbital flights, with a short period of weightlessness. The time from liftoff of the White Knight II carrying SpaceShipTwo until the touchdown of SpaceShipTwo after the suborbital flight will be about 2.5 hours. The suborbital flight itself will be only a fraction of that time. The weightlessness will last approximately 6 minutes.[2] It is intended that passengers will be able to release themselves from their seats during these 6 minutes and float around the cabin.[1] In human spaceflight, a pilot is someone who directly controls the operation of a spacecraft while located within the same craft. ...


SpaceShipTwo's performance

SpaceShipTwo will fly a little higher than SpaceShipOne, to a height of 110 km in order to go beyond the defined boundary of space (100 km) and lengthen the experience of weightlessness.[1] The spacecraft will reach around Mach 3 (1000 m/s), which is slightly more than current fighter jets are capable of obtaining, however the spacecraft will not be able to sustain that speed for long periods of time. The craft thus has a very limited cross-range capability and therefore has to land in the area where it started.


Name of spacecraft

SpaceShipTwo is the name of the prototype of the Virgin craft. Virgin Galactic has contracted with The Spaceship Company (owned by Virgin Group and Scaled) to build five SpaceShipTwos and two WhiteKnightTwos (Tier 1b). SpaceShipTwo is a suborbital spaceplane currently under development by The Spaceship Company, a joint venture between Scaled Composites and Sir Richard Bransons Virgin Group of the UK, as part of the Tier 1b program. ... The Spaceship Company is a spacecraft manufacturing company formed by Burt Rutan and Richard Branson, jointly owned by Virgin Group and Scaled Composites, which will own the techology created by Scaled for Virgin Galctics Virgin SpaceShip program. ... Scaled Composites (often abbreviated as Scaled) was founded in 1982 in Mojave, California by famous aircraft designer Burt Rutan out of what used to be the Rutan Aircraft Factory. ... Scaled Composites White Knight Two or Eve is the first stage of Tier 1b, a two-stage to suborbital-space manned launch system. ... Tier 1b is Burt Rutans nickname for the SpaceShipTwo/White Knight Two suborbital tourist human spaceflight platform in development at Scaled Composites with Mojave Aerospace Ventures by The Spaceship Company for Virgin Galactic. ...


The spacecraft are to be named using the prefix VSS ("Virgin SpaceShip"). The first craft is to be VSS Enterprise, in an acknowledged nod to Star Trek's USS Enterprise;[6][7] the second, possibly named after the Star Trek craft or the spaceprobe, is expected to be named VSS Voyager. The VSS Enterprise is the first commercial spaceship being constructed by Virgin Galactic, based on the design of SpaceShipOne. ... The current Star Trek franchise logo Star Trek is an American science fiction franchise. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The USS Voyager (NCC-74656) is an Intrepid class starship in the Star Trek fictional universe. ... Voyager Project redirects here. ... Virgin Galactic is a company in Richard Bransons Virgin Group, which plans to offer spaceflights to the paying public. ...


Current status

The full-size model of the interior of SpaceShipTwo was revealed during a technology show in New York on September 28, 2006.[8] The spaceship will hold six passengers and two pilots, and the mock-up featured a spacious cabin with reclining seats and large windows for people to look out 2000 km in any direction.[1] Unlike commercial air carriers, Virgin Galactic is likely to be a "spaceline" with the same place of origin and destination - for now, at least. September 28 is the 271st day of the year (272nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ...


Bookings

Branson has suggested an initial ticket price of US$200,000 for a suborbital tourist flight, as part of a three day experience which includes flight training. Although the initial deposit is set to be $200,000 for the first 100 to fly, the next 400 will pay a deposit between $100,000 and $175,000; all passengers after that will pay a deposit of only $20,000 each.[1] Following an email survey sent to a Virgin Galactic mailing-list, including the question, "Would you consider putting down a deposit for a ride when we are ready for you to do so?", the company has stated that at this price they estimate a market of between 7,000 and 15,000 potential passengers (a claim disputed by some), to fly over a five-year period starting as early as 2009.[citation needed] Furthermore, they believe that over a five-year period only 5,000 passengers would be needed in order to be profitable.[citation needed] Profits from early flights would be reinvested to make space tourism more affordable. 2009 (MMIX) will be a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...


Among those reported to have told Branson that they wished to be among the first to fly on the spacecraft are Star Trek actor William Shatner,[9][2][10] designer Philippe Starck,[11] The Panic Channel guitarist Dave Navarro,[12] Alien star Sigourney Weaver,[13] Hollywood director Bryan Singer,[11] Musician Moby,[12] socialite Paris Hilton,[14] and astrophysicist Stephen Hawking (who on January 8, 2007 announced plans to take a sub-orbital flight in 2009[15]). Moby would be the first pop star in history to travel to space.[12] Also, Richard Branson himself and some of his family members will be launched on the VSS Enterprise's first commercial flight in 2009, before everyone else.[16] In 2006, Richard Branson offered actor William Shatner a free ride on the inaugural space launch in 2008, saving Shatner $200,000; however, Shatner turned it down, and said, "I do want to go up but I need guarantees I'll definitely come back".[17] In addition, other celebrities such as Patrick Stewart have expressed serious doubts about flying into space.[18] In March 2005, Doug Ramsberg, a native of Northglenn, Colorado, won a free trip to suborbital space aboard Virgin Galactic, from a Volvo sweepstakes sponsored by Virgin.[19] On April 20, 2005, Virgin Galactic president Will Whitehorn told a U.S. congressional hearing that 100 people had put down deposits for their space flights.[citation needed] In September 2006, Alan Watts, a British businessman, indicated that he was able to redeem 2,000,000 frequent flyer miles for a ticket aboard a 2009 Virgin Galactic space flight.[20] The current Star Trek franchise logo Star Trek is an American science fiction franchise. ... William Bill Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is an Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning Canadian actor, who gained fame for his starring role as Captain James T. Kirk of the USS Enterprise in the television show Star Trek from 1966 to 1969 and in seven of the subsequent movies. ... A book about Starck by Taschen Philippe Patrick Starck (born January 18, 1949) is a well-known French designer and probably the best known designer in the New Design style. ... The Panic Channel is an alternative rock band featuring former members of Janes Addiction. ... David Michael Navarro (born June 7, 1967) is a guitarist who has played in the rock bands Janes Addiction and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. ... Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Alien (film) Alien, a 1979 science fiction / horror film directed by Ridley Scott, builds on an original story written by Dan OBannon and Ronald Shusett. ... Sigourney Weaver (born Susan Alexandra Weaver on October 8, 1949 in New York City) is an Oscar-nominated American actress. ... ... Bryan Singer (born September 17, 1965) is an American film director. ... Moby (born Richard Melville Hall on September 11, 1965, in Harlem, New York, and raised in Darien, Connecticut) is an American songwriter, musician and singer. ... Paris Whitney Hilton (born February 17, 1981) is an heiress to the Hilton Hotel fortune, as well as her father, Richard Hiltons, real estate fortune. ... Stephen William Hawking, CH, CBE, FRS, FRSA, (born 8 January 1942) is a British theoretical physicist. ... January 8 is the 8th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... 2009 (MMIX) will be a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... William Bill Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is an Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning Canadian actor, who gained fame for his starring role as Captain James T. Kirk of the USS Enterprise in the television show Star Trek from 1966 to 1969 and in seven of the subsequent movies. ... 2008 (MMVIII) will be a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Patrick Stewart, OBE, (born July 13, 1940) is an English film, television, and stage actor and Vice-Chancellor of Huddersfield University. ... Northglenn is a city located in Adams County, Colorado. ... Volvo Cars is the premium car maker using the brand Volvo. ... April 20 is the 110th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (111th in leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Congressional hearings are the principal formal method by which committees collect and analyze information in the early stages of legislative policymaking. ...


Flight personnel and training

At the 2005 Oshkosh Airshow, it was stated that Virgin Galactic had received over 4000 applications for the role of spaceship pilot. Approximately 75 pilots will be required to operate the SpaceShipTwo fleet.[21] Aerobatic team performs at EAA AirVenture The Oshkosh Airshow (officially EAA AirVenture Oshkosh) is an annual gathering of aviation enthusiasts held each summer at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. ...


The first announcements regarding Virgin Galactic flight personnel were made in late March 2006.[22]

  • Steve Johnson (Virgin Atlantic training captain, ex-Red Arrows pilot): Chief Astronaut Pilot
  • Alistair Hoy (Virgin Atlantic training captain, ex-Red Arrows pilot): Chief Training Astronaut
  • David MacKay (Virgin Atlantic line captain): Test pilot

Virgin Galactic flight assignments will last twenty-seven months: pilots will receive nine months of aerobatic, fast jet and executive jet training to prepare them for zero gravity flight. The next nine months will be spent in flying the White Knight Two mothership and participating in Mission Control work. The final nine months will be spent flying Virgin Galactic spacecraft into space. Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd. ... Red Arrows Hawk at speed during a display The Red Arrows, officially known as the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, is the aerobatics display team of the Royal Air Force, based at RAF Scampton, United Kingdom. ...


By 2008, Virgin Galactic expects to have around thirty astronaut pilots recruited from the various Virgin Group airlines, trained with NASA assistance.[23] The Virgin Group Ltd is a group of separately run companies that each use Virgin brand of English celebrity business tycoon Sir Richard Branson. ... The NASA worm logo. ...


Spaceports

Virgin Galactic will locate its primary launch and operational activities at Spaceport America, near Upham in Sierra County in southern New Mexico, and its worldwide headquarters in New Mexico. It signed an MOA to this effect with the New Mexico Spaceport Authority in March 2007.


Virgin Galactic has also announced that it will investigate the feasibility of flying from Kiruna (Esrange) in northern Sweden.

Will Whitehorn, president of Virgin Galactic with Maud Olofsson, Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden, after the signing the agreement between Virgin Galactic and Spaceport Sweden.
Will Whitehorn, president of Virgin Galactic with Maud Olofsson, Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden, after the signing the agreement between Virgin Galactic and Spaceport Sweden.

On December 13, 2005, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson and Virgin Founder Richard Branson announced that Virgin Galactic would work with the New Mexico state government on a project named Spaceport America, a $198 million facility to be located near Upham, New Mexico. The venture was approved by the state legislature and the funding plans signed into law by governor Bill Richardson on March 1, 2006. Virgin Galactic will be the anchor tenant, and is expected to be the first to operate manned spacecraft from this facility. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 533 pixels Full resolution (2496 × 1664 pixel, file size: 853 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg)Will Whitehorn, president of Virgin Galactic with Maud Olofsson, Minister for Enterprise and Energy as well as Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden, after the signing... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 533 pixels Full resolution (2496 × 1664 pixel, file size: 853 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg)Will Whitehorn, president of Virgin Galactic with Maud Olofsson, Minister for Enterprise and Energy as well as Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden, after the signing... Maud Olofsson Maud Olofsson (born Olsson, August 1955) is a Swedish politician and the current leader of the Centre Party of Sweden (Centerpartiet). ... The Swedish constitution of 1974 requires that the Prime Minister of Sweden appoints one of the Ministers in the cabinet as Vice Prime Minister, in case the Prime Minister for some reason is prevented from performing his or her duties. ... Spaceport Sweden is a company that plans to make Kiruna the primary European Spaceport for personal suborbital spaceflight and space tourism. ... December 13 is the 347th day of the year (348th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Capital Santa Fe Largest city Albuquerque Area  Ranked 5th  - Total 121,665 sq mi (315,194 km²)  - Width 342 miles (550 km)  - Length 370 miles (595 km)  - % water 0. ... Spaceport America (Also known as Southwest Regional Spaceport) is located on 27 square-miles of state-owned desert near Upham, New Mexico, 45 miles north of Las Cruces, and 30 miles east of Truth or Consequences. ... Upham New Mexico is the planned site for the Southwest Regional Spaceport. ... William Blaine Bill Richardson (born November 15, 1947) is an American politician and a member of the Democratic Party. ... March 1 is the 60th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (61st in leap years). ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ...


On January 26, Virgin Galactic signed a deal with Spaceport Sweden on working towards starting commercial space flights from the city of Kiruna in 2012. Kiruna is deemed particularly suitable, due to the possibility of in-flight views of the aurora borealis and because of its long tradition of space research at the Swedish Institute of Space Physics and Esrange.[24] January 26 is the 26th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Spaceport Sweden is a company that plans to make Kiruna the primary European Spaceport for personal suborbital spaceflight and space tourism. ... Kiruna is a city in northernmost Sweden with 19,000 inhabitants; and 23,000 in the Kiruna Municipality. ... 2012 (MMXII) will be a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Aurora borealis Polar aurorae are optical phenomena characterized by colorful displays of light in the night sky. ... The Swedish Institute of Space Physics or Institutet för rymdfysik (IRF) is a Swedish government agency. ... Esrange, the European Space and Sounding Rocket Range, is a rocket range and research center located outside the town of Kiruna in northern Sweden at 67°5338 N and 21°0625 E. It is a base for atmospheric research with balloons, investigation of the aurora borealis, and rocket...


Virgin is also considering launches from Scotland.[25] Motto (Latin) No one provokes me with impunity Wha daur meddle wi me?(Scots)1 Anthem (Multiple unofficial anthems) Scotlands location in Europe Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official languages English, Gaelic, Scots3 Government Constitutional monarchy  -  Queen Queen Elizabeth II  -  Prime Minister Tony Blair MP  -  First Minister Jack McConnell...


It was announced in August 2006 that Virgin Galactic was also considering RAF St. Mawgan in Cornwall as a possible contender for a launch site. RAF St. Mawgan at present faces an uncertain future because of next year's withdrawal of the Ministry of Defence.[26] RAF St. ... Cornwall (Cornish: ) is a county in South West England, United Kingdom, on the peninsula that lies to the west of the River Tamar and Devon. ...


Branson has also said that Cape Canaveral's Kennedy Space Center could serve as an East Coast spaceport.[citation needed] Cape Canaveral from space, August 1991 Cape Canaveral (Cabo Cañaveral in Spanish) is a strip of land in Brevard County, Florida, United States, near the center of that states Atlantic coast. ... Merritt Island and Kennedy Space Center The John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC) is the NASA space vehicle launch facility (spaceport) at Cape Canaveral on Merritt Island in Florida, United States. ...


Spacecraft technology

SpaceShipTwo will reach a speed of roughly 4000 km/h (2500 mph) as it is heading for space, using a single hybrid rocket-motor; SpaceShipTwo uses a feathered re-entry system, which results in a low speed of re-entry -- by contrast, space shuttles and other orbital spacecraft re-enter at orbital speeds, which requires the use of heat shields. SpaceShipTwo will carry 6 passengers and 2 pilots and launch in midair at 15 km from its mother ship, WhiteKnightTwo. In the future, it is believed the space vehicles will be bigger and able to carry more passengers. Further technical detail is not yet publicly available. The ships are being built by Scaled Composites, at the Mojave Spaceport in California, USA. NASAs Space Shuttle, officially called Space Transportation System (STS), is the United States governments current manned launch vehicle. ...


Virgin Galactic is in negotiations with Lloyd's of London for flight insurance. This will cover risks to people and structures on the ground near the launch site. Passengers on suborbital flights are expected to travel at their own risk, at least initially. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Council of Lloyds. ...


Future plans

According to the Virgin Galactic website, Branson has plans for orbital space tourism and proposes putting a hotel in space. It is expected that some of the future spacecraft will be able to dock with a space hotel.


Competition

There are numerous other companies actively working on commercial passenger suborbital spaceflight (see: Private spaceflight). Virgin Galactic's most likely competitors include Rocketplane Kistler, Space Adventures, and Benson Space Company. This space for sale Private spaceflight is flight above 100km Earth altitude conducted by an entity other than a government. ... Rocketplane Kistler is an umbrella enterprise comprised of two private aerospace firms dedicated to establishing a reusable space craft industry; Rocketplane Limited, Inc. ... Space Adventures, Ltd. ... It is proposed that this article be deleted, because of the following concern: This company does not meet the notability requirements of WP:CORP If you can address this concern by improving, copyediting, sourcing, renaming or merging the page, please edit this page and do so. ...


Trivia

In the 2006 movie Superman Returns, during the maiden flight of a new fictional commercial Space Shuttle the Virgin Galactic brand can be seen in the inflight presentation. The shuttle pilot is in fact Richard Branson himself, and the copilot is played by his son. The movie's director, Bryan Singer, is amongst those reported to want to fly on the real Virgin Galactic maiden flight. For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... Superman Returns is an Academy Award-nominated 2006 superhero film based on the fictional DC Comics character Superman. ... NASAs Space Shuttle, officially called Space Transportation System (STS), is the United States governments current manned launch vehicle. ... Bryan Singer (born September 17, 1965) is an American film director. ...


See also

Bigelow Aerospace is a Las Vegas, Nevada, space technology startup company that is pioneering work on expandable space station modules. ... Blue Origin is a privately-funded aerospace company initially focused on sub-orbital spaceflight founded in 2000. ... A list of private companies offering or planning spaceflight solutions // Ad Astra Rocket Company AERA Corporation ARCA Armadillo Aerospace Beal Aerospace (defunct) Benson Space Company Bigelow Aerospace Blue Origin Canadian Arrow/Planetspace Da Vinci Project Interorbital Systems JP Aerospace Masten Space Systems Rocketplane Scaled Composites/The Spaceship Company Space Adventures... Rocketplane Limited, Inc. ... Space Adventures, Ltd. ... The curvature of the Earth seen from orbit would be one of the main attractions for tourists paying to go into space Space tourism is the recent phenomenon of space travel by individuals for the purpose of personal pleasure. ...

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "http://www.virgingalactic.com/htmlsite/faq.htm". 
  2. ^ a b c "http://www.soultek.com/space_privatization/Virgin_Galactic_Captain_Kirk_and_spaceshipone.htm". 
  3. ^ Space Adventures Orbital Program
  4. ^ "http://www.virgingalactic.com/htmlsite/overview.htm". 
  5. ^ "http://spaceports.blogspot.com/2006/09/virgin-galactic-readies-tourist.html". 
  6. ^ "http://www.dailynugget.com/2006/09/shatner_refuses_free_space_trip.php". 
  7. ^ "http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7004769048". 
  8. ^ "http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/content/?cid=4835". 
  9. ^ "http://news.com.com/Space+adventurers+race+to+get+aboard+Virgin+ship/2100-1026_3-5406523.html". 
  10. ^ "http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/europe/10/22/branson.space/index.html". 
  11. ^ a b "http://www.space.com/news/ap_060718_virgin_update.html". 
  12. ^ a b c "http://www.nme.com/news/moby/21800". 
  13. ^ "http://www.theregister.com/2004/11/19/weaver_travels_to_space/". 
  14. ^ "http://www.forbes.com/2006/04/03/virgin-atlantic-galactic-cx_po_0403autofacescan01.html". 
  15. ^ "http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/space/2007-01-08-hawking-space_x.htm?csp=34". 
  16. ^ "http://entrepreneurs.about.com/od/famousentrepreneurs/p/richardbranson.htm". 
  17. ^ "http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7004769048". 
  18. ^ "http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/3455463.stm". 
  19. ^ Spooner, John G.. "From Colorado to outer space", Today on CNET, C, 2005-03-24. Retrieved on 2006-06-02.
  20. ^ "London man uses air miles for space trip", United Press International, September 29, 2006.
  21. ^ "Reusable Launch Vehicle News", HobbySpace, July 27, 2005.
  22. ^ "Virgin Atlantic Pilots offered chance to become Astronauts", ASIA Travel Tips, March 30, 2006.
  23. ^ "News Breaks", Aviation Week & Space Technology, April 10, 2006.
  24. ^ "http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/space/4502429.html". 
  25. ^ Hall, Keith. "Branson wants Scotland to rival the Kennedy Space Center", 24dash, September 9, 2006.
  26. ^ Outer Space - One Small Step Beyond. This Is Cornwall (August 30, 2006).

2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... March 24 is the 83rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (84th in leap years). ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... June 2 is the 153rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (154th in leap years), with 212 days remaining. ... September 29 is the 272nd day of the year (273rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 27 is the 208th day (209th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 157 days remaining. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... March 30 is the 89th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (90th in leap years). ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... Aviation Week & Space Technology (often abbreviated as Aviation Week or AW&ST) is a weekly magazine which reports upon the state of the aerospace industry. ... April 10 is the 100th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (101st in leap years). ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... September 9 is the 252nd day of the year (253rd in leap years). ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... August 30 is the 242nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (243rd in leap years), with 123 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ...

External links

Affiliated corporations

News articles


  Results from FactBites:
 
Virgin Galactic - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (1560 words)
Virgin Galactic is a company within Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group, which plans to offer sub-orbital spaceflights and later orbital spaceflights to the paying public.
Virgin Galactic plans to fly 500 passengers a year at about US$200,000 each, to an altitude of over 100 km, with a total weightless time of 7 minutes.
Virgin Galactic is in negotiations with Lloyd's of London for flight insurance.
  More results at FactBites »


 

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