Privately Financed Spaceship Roars Closer to Space

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/30/science/space/virgin-galactics-spaceshiptwo-inches-closer-to-space.html

Version 0 of 1.

For the more than 500 space tourists who have signed up for a trip on Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic, Monday was a milestone: the day the spaceship that will be carrying them aloft made its first powered flight and broke the sound barrier for its first time.

</param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="seamlessTabbing" value="false"></param><param name="swliveconnect" value="true"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><param name="quality" value="high"></param><param name="bgcolor" value="#000000"></param></object><h6 class="credit">By Virgin Galactic</h6><p class="caption">Virgin Galactic's rocket-powered SpaceShipTwo breaks the speed of sound on April 29, 2013.

That goal was delayed by technological challenges, including an explosion during a propulsion test at Scaled Composites in 2007 that killed three workers.

“It’s been a tough 8.5 years, trying to get everything right,” Mr. Branson said. “Today really was almost the culmination of all that.”

Over the past two and a half years, SpaceShipTwo has made a series of tests as a glider. On Monday morning, with Mr. Branson among the spectators, a carrier aircraft lofted SpaceShipTwo to a height of 47,000 feet before letting it go. This time, it did more than glide.

The engine roared for 16 seconds, accelerating SpaceShipTwo to Mach 1.2 – 1.2 times the speed of sound – and pushing it to an altitude of 55,000 feet, about 10.5 miles. “You can see very, very clearly the plume of flames coming out the back of the spaceship,” Mr. Branson said. “You can see it speeding up through the sky.”

With the engine off, it then glided to landing about 10 minutes later.

“Before it’s lit, there’s natural nervousness,” said Mr. Branson, who stood next to Mr. Rutan during the test flight. “Once it was lit, it was a moment of relief, but also actually joy for every single person standing there.”

More test flights will follow as SpaceShipTwo goes faster and higher before the start of commercial operations, which will be launched from Spaceport America outside Las Cruces, N.M. Virgin Galactic currently has 560 ticket holders.