Halfway There: SpaceShipOne Hits Space Again
It was a nailbiter this morning at the Mojave spaceport in California when SpaceShipOne successfully returned to space; half way to winning the $10 million X-Prize.
SpaceShipOne’s Engine Designer Working with NASA
SpaceDev, the company that designed and built the hybrid rocket engine for Scaled Composite’s SpaceShipOne, announced that they’ve entered discussions with NASA to design a low-cost suborbital spaceship. The SpaceDev Dream Chaser would take off vertically, and carry up to three people to an altitude of 160 km (100 miles). If everything goes well, the spacecraft would be built by 2008, and would demonstrate a set of launch and flight technologies. Further versions of the spacecraft would eventually be able to go into orbit and transfer crew to and from the International Space Station.
SpaceShipOne Problem Resolved
Wired News is reporting that Burt Rutan has resolved the nearly catastrophic problems that cropped up during SpaceShipOne’s historic flight into space last flight. After his flight, pilot Mike Melvill said that a control malfunctioned, caused the rocket plane to roll 90 degrees over to the left, and then 90 degrees to the right when …
Photo Gallery of SpaceShipOne
In case you weren’t one of the 10,000 plus people who made the trip to Mojave airport to watch Monday’s launch of SpaceShipOne, here’s a photo gallery of images from that amazing day. A special thanks to correspondent and photographer Tony Hesch for taking these amazing photos from the event. And a big thanks to …
Success for SpaceShipOne!
History was made today when test pilot Mike Melvill became the first private citizen to get his astronaut wings today when he flew Scaled Composites’ SpaceShipOne (SS1) into space, reaching an altitude of more than 100 km (62.5 miles).
SpaceShipOne Set for Launch in a Week
In just one week Scaled Composite’s SpaceShipOne will make an attempt to become the first privately-built vehicle to reach space – an altitude of 100 km (62 miles). Thousands of people are expected to show up at the runway in California’s Mojave Desert to watch the launch and suborbital flight. This won’t be an official …
SpaceShipOne’s Launch Date Set
The first privately built manned spacecraft will rocket into space on June 21 according to a recent announcement from Scaled Composites. The company’s SpaceShipOne will fly to an altitude of 100 km (62 miles), and whoever pilots it will be the first private citizen to receive astronaut wings for heading into space. Although SpaceShipOne is aiming for the Ansari X-Prize, it won’t be on this attempt, since the spacecraft will only be carrying the pilot. To win the prize, SpaceShipOne will need to carry the equivalent weight for two more passengers and complete the journey to space twice within two weeks.
SpaceShipOne Soars to 65 km on Test Flight
The privately built SpaceShipOne completed another powered flight test on Thursday, this time achieving an altitude of 65 km. Built by Scaled Composites, and backed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, SpaceShipOne is considered to be the top contender to win the $10 million Ansari X Prize which will be awarded to the first private reusable …
Continue reading “SpaceShipOne Soars to 65 km on Test Flight”
Paul Allen is Backing SpaceShipOne
Scaled Composites has confirmed that billionaire Paul Allen is the financial backer for the company’s SpaceShipOne suborbital rocket plane – a rumour that’s been circulating in the space industry for several months. Allen’s announcement coincided with SpaceShipOne’s recent flight test which broke the sound barrier. Allen is the third richest person in the United States …
SpaceShipOne Goes Supersonic
Image credit: Scaled Scaled Composites’ SpaceShipOne achieved an important milestone this week when it broke the sound barrier on a test flight. The suborbital prototype was carried to 14,600 metres by the White Knight carrier plane, and then released. It fired up its hybrid rocket engine and flew up to an altitude of 20,700 metres, …