Virgin Galactic, the Space Tourism Company founded by Richard Branson, is ready to launch its first spaceflight mission in nearly two years on Thursday, May 26, a final test mission planned with six crew members before starting the anticipated commercial service.
The company's Unity 25 mission will be launched from Spaceport America, New Mexico, after 22 months since billionaire Branson and other Virgin Galactic employees climbed the space boundary on the SpaceShipTwo spacecraft. This attention-catching mission is expected to open the door to routine flights in the near future.
However, a safety investigation by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) against Branson's flight hampered the company's plans in the short term. Likewise, the spacecraft upgrade period lasts longer than Virgin Galactic's initial estimate.
Virgin Galactic is currently targeting a schedule for morning flights starting at 10 am Eastern time. The dual-body carrier named VSS Eve will take off from the runway on the New Mexico site carrying a suborbital spacecraft called VSS Unity.
If all goes well, Virgin Galactic hopes to carry out its first commercial mission by the end of June, a long-awaited research flight by the Italian Air Force. The company then plans to carry out a mission around every month.
Virgin Galactic pilot Jameel Janjua and Nicola Pecile will fly the VMS Eve carrier and drop the spacecraft when it reaches an altitude of about 50,000 feet. Once unconnected, the spacecraft will power its rocket engine and rise to an altitude of about 50 miles in microgravity, the Earth's atmospheric limit recognized by the United States.
This test mission, which lasts about 90 minutes from takeoff to spacecraft, landed after spending three minutes in microgravity, following the type of flight Virgin Galactic will provide for about 800 customers who are still waiting. Most customers have paid between 250,000 US dollars (Rp 3.7 billion) to 450,000 US dollars (Rp 6.7 billion) for the ticket.
On the spacecraft, Mike Masucci and CJ Sturckow will pilot. Inside the cabin there will be the company's main astronaut instructor, Beth Moses, astronaut instructor Luke Mays, senior engineering manager Christopher Huie, and senior internal communications manager Jamila Gilbert.
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