Tag: VSS Unity
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Virgin Galactic gets set for SpaceShipTwo flights that aim for space — but how high?
Virgin Galactic is getting VSS Unity ready for a crucial series of test flights. (Virgin Galactic Photo) Virgin Galactic says it’s beginning a series of SpaceShipTwo test flights that could cross the edge of the space frontier as early as Thursday — amid a debate over where exactly that edge kicks in. The company has…
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Virgin Galactic gets set for SpaceShipTwo flights that aim for space — but how high?
Virgin Galactic is getting VSS Unity ready for a crucial series of test flights. (Virgin Galactic Photo) Virgin Galactic says it’s beginning a series of SpaceShipTwo test flights that could cross the edge of the space frontier as early as Thursday — amid a debate over where exactly that edge kicks in. The company has…
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VSS Unity completes third powered flight – achieves Mach 2.47
Virgin Galatic took another step closer to realizing its long-fought dream of carrying paying customers on a suborbital ride into space with a third powered test flight for the VSS Unity. Thursday’s test was piloted by Dave Mackay and Mike ‘Sooch’ Masucci and appears to be another successful flight pushing the vehicle to new heights.…
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SpaceShipTwo rocket plane pushes the envelope in third supersonic test flight
Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo rocket plane, VSS Unity, fires up its hybrid rocket motor during a supersonic test flight. (MarsScientific.com and Trumbull Studios via Virgin Galactic) Virgin Galactic sent its SpaceShipTwo rocket plane, VSS Unity, to its highest-ever altitude today during its third powered test flight — setting the stage for a full-powered push across the boundary…
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Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo fires up rocket for another step toward spaceflight
Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity space plane fires up its hybrid rocket motor during a test flight. (MarsScientific.com and Trumbull Studios) Virgin Galactic sent its VSS Unity space plane skyward for a second supersonic rocket-powered test flight today, bringing the company one step closer toward reaching the space frontier. “It was great to see our beautiful spaceship…
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SpaceShipTwo goes supersonic in first powered flight since fatal breakup in 2014
Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo rocket plane, christened VSS Unity, fires up its hybrid rocket motor for the first time. (Mars Scientific / Trumbull Studios Photo) Virgin Galactic’s second SpaceShipTwo rocket plane flew a smooth, supersonic test flight today during its first rocket-powered outing since the first SpaceShipTwo broke up three and a half years ago. The…
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Virgin Galactic strikes a deal to send Italian scientist on suborbital space trip in 2019
Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity glides through a test flight. (Virgin Galactic Photo) News Brief: Virgin Galactic and the Italian Space Agency say they’ve signed a letter of intent to send an Italian payload specialist and scientific experiments on a suborbital space mission in 2019. The deal was announced today during the Next-Generation Suborbital Researchers Conference…
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Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo plane glides through a ‘dry run’ for blastoff
Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity glides through a test flight. (Virgin Galactic Photo) Virgin Galactic said its SpaceShipTwo rocket plane today executed a successful gliding flight test that was “essentially a dry run for rocket-powered flights.” “Our major first today though was that with the exception of the rocket motor fuel grain … we flew with…
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Richard Branson says SpaceShipTwo is set to blast off into space by year’s end
Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity glides through the skies over California’s Mojave Desert. (Virgin Galactic Photo) Virgin Galactic’s billionaire founder, Richard Branson, has been toning down his predictions about the SpaceShipTwo rocket plane’s future trips to space. Until now. During a trip to Hong Kong to inaugurate a new Virgin Australia route from Melbourne, Branson said…
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SpaceShipTwo’s test flight makes a splash
A long contrail extends behind Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity rocket plane as it releases about 1,000 pounds of water from a ballast tank. (Virgin Galactic Photo) Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo rocket plane took another step toward lighting up its engine in flight today, by simulating the shift in its weight with water instead of rocket fuel.…