{"id":13447,"date":"2018-12-14T17:36:54","date_gmt":"2018-12-14T09:36:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/video-and-photo-highlights-of-virgin-galactics-historic-spaceshiptwo-test-flight\/"},"modified":"2018-12-14T17:36:54","modified_gmt":"2018-12-14T09:36:54","slug":"video-and-photo-highlights-of-virgin-galactics-historic-spaceshiptwo-test-flight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/video-and-photo-highlights-of-virgin-galactics-historic-spaceshiptwo-test-flight\/","title":{"rendered":"Video and photo highlights of Virgin Galactic\u2019s historic SpaceShipTwo test flight"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"678\" height=\"381\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2eVRjvgj38I?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen=\"\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Check out video highlights released by Virgin Galactic of Thursday\u2019s test flight by the company\u2019s SpaceShipTwo rocket plane to an altitude of 271,000 feet (82.7 kilometers), above a boundary recognized by the U.S. government as the edge of space.<\/p>\n<p>The air-dropped rocket plane took off from Mojave Air and Space Port in California under a four-engine carrier jet shortly after 7 a.m. PST (10 a.m. EST; 1500 GMT) Thursday and climbed to an altitude of 43,000 feet (13,100 meters). Piloted by Mark \u201cForger\u201d Stucky and Rick \u201cC.J.\u201d Sturckow, the SpaceShipTwo vehicle released from its mothership and fired a hybrid rocket motor nearly 60 seconds to accelerate to Mach 2.9 \u2014 nearly three times the speed of sound \u2014 and soar to an altitude of 51 miles.<\/p>\n<p>It was the first time Virgin Galactic\u2019s SpaceShipTwo, intended to carry space tourists on brief hops to the edge of space, has flown above the 50-mile mark, a threshold recognized by the U.S. Air Force, NASA and the Federal Aviation Administration as the boundary of space.<\/p>\n<p>Read our full story for details on Thursday\u2019s flight, and what it means for Virgin Galactic and the commercial space industry.<\/p>\n<p>Additional video and photo highlights of Thursday\u2019s flight are posted below.<\/p>\n<p><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-0\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowtransparency=\"true\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" class=\"\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden; width: 0px; height: 0px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?dnt=false&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-0&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=1073461961088585728&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fspaceflightnow.com%2F2018%2F12%2F14%2Fvideo-and-photo-highlights-of-virgin-galactics-historic-spaceshiptwo-test-flight%2F&amp;sessionId=902a5d3a7e2504c0630fbe939e17fd1429b812b2&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&amp;width=550px\" data-tweet-id=\"1073461961088585728\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-lang=\"en\" data-twitter-extracted-i1782699181869937187=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">We&#8217;re taking you to space, @richardbranson <img decoding=\"async\" draggable=\"false\" role=\"img\" class=\"emoji\" alt=\"\ud83d\ude80\" src=\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/17.0.2\/svg\/1f680.svg\"> <img decoding=\"async\" draggable=\"false\" role=\"img\" class=\"emoji\" alt=\"\ud83c\udf0e\" src=\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/17.0.2\/svg\/1f30e.svg\"> pic.twitter.com\/BKSjzutqRL<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Virgin Galactic (@virgingalactic) December 14, 2018<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> <script async=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script> <\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36040\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36040\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36040\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/DuTf6YTVsAAQGXC.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"802\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/DuTf6YTVsAAQGXC.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/DuTf6YTVsAAQGXC-300x201.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/DuTf6YTVsAAQGXC-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/DuTf6YTVsAAQGXC-678x453.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36040\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Virgin Galactic test pilot Mark Stucky walks out of the hangar at Mojave Air and Space Port ahead of Thursday\u2019s flight. Credit: Virgin Galactic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36041\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36041\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36041\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/DuTf6X2VYAAu1C6.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"802\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/DuTf6X2VYAAu1C6.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/DuTf6X2VYAAu1C6-300x201.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/DuTf6X2VYAAu1C6-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/DuTf6X2VYAAu1C6-678x453.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36041\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Virgin Galactic test pilot Rick \u201cC.J.\u201d Sturckow prepares for Thursday\u2019s flight. Credit: Virgin Galactic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36051\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36051\" style=\"width: 900px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36051\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Take_off.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"900\" height=\"641\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Take_off.jpg 900w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Take_off-300x214.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Take_off-768x547.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Take_off-678x483.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36051\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Virgin Galactic\u2019s carrier aircraft, VMS Eve, takes off from Mojave Air and Space Port, California, with the VSS Unity SpaceShipTwo vehicle underneath. Credit: Virgin Galactic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36052\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36052\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36052\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"404\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-1.jpg 720w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-1-300x168.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-1-678x381.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36052\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Credit: Gene Blevins\/LA Daily News\/SCNG<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36053\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36053\" style=\"width: 678px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-36053 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"678\" height=\"310\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-2.jpg 678w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-2-300x137.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 678px) 100vw, 678px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36053\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Credit: Gene Blevins\/LA Daily News\/SCNG<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36054\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36054\" style=\"width: 678px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36054\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-3.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"678\" height=\"536\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-3.jpg 678w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-3-300x237.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 678px) 100vw, 678px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36054\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Credit: Gene Blevins\/LA Daily News\/SCNG<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36055\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36055\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36055\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-4.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"310\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-4.jpg 720w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-4-300x129.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-4-678x292.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36055\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Credit: Gene Blevins\/LA Daily News\/SCNG<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36056\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36056\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36056\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-5.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"587\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-5.jpg 720w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-5-300x245.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-5-678x553.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36056\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Credit: Gene Blevins\/LA Daily News\/SCNG<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36037\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36037\" style=\"width: 900px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36037\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactics_First_Spaceflight.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"900\" height=\"506\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactics_First_Spaceflight.jpg 900w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactics_First_Spaceflight-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactics_First_Spaceflight-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactics_First_Spaceflight-678x381.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36037\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Virgin Galactic\u2019s SpaceShipTwo rocket plane fires toward space Thursday. Credit: MarsScientific.com &amp; Trumbull Studios \/ Virgin Galactic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36057\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36057\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36057\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_in_Space1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_in_Space1.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_in_Space1-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_in_Space1-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_in_Space1-678x381.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36057\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">This view of the Sierra Nevada mountain range was captured by a camera on-board SpaceShipTwo. Credit: Virgin Galactic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36038\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36038\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36038\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_First_Spaceflight_Cockpit_Still.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_First_Spaceflight_Cockpit_Still.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_First_Spaceflight_Cockpit_Still-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_First_Spaceflight_Cockpit_Still-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_First_Spaceflight_Cockpit_Still-678x381.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36038\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">A view from the cockpit of VSS Unity on Thursday\u2019s flight, showing part of Southern California\u2019s Pacific coastline. Credit: Virgin Galactic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36058\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36058\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36058\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-7.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"368\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-7.jpg 720w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-7-300x153.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-7-678x347.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36058\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">VSS Unity glides back to Mojave Air and Space Port. Credit: Gene Blevins\/LA Daily News\/SCNG<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36039\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36039\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36039\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-8.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-8.jpg 720w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-8-300x167.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-8-678x377.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36039\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Virgin Galactic\u2019s VSS Unity rocket plane glides to a landing at Mojave Air and Space Port to conclude Thursday\u2019s test flight. Credit: Gene Blevins\/LA Daily News\/SCNG<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36059\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36059\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36059\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-9.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"348\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-9.jpg 720w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-9-300x145.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/VIRGIN-TEST-FLIGHT-9-678x328.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36059\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">VSS Unity glides back to Mojave Air and Space Port. Credit: Gene Blevins\/LA Daily News\/SCNG<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36060\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36060\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36060\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_350922.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_350922.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_350922-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_350922-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_350922-678x452.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36060\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">VSS Unity glides back to Mojave Air and Space Port. Credit: Virgin Galactic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36061\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36061\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36061\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_First_Astronauts1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_First_Astronauts1.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_First_Astronauts1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_First_Astronauts1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Virgin_Galactic_First_Astronauts1-678x452.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36061\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Virgin Galactic\u2019s first two astronauts walk back to greet Richard Branson. Credit: Virgin Galactic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_36062\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36062\" style=\"width: 900px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-36062\" src=\"http:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/RichardBransonandAstronauts.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"900\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/RichardBransonandAstronauts.jpg 900w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/RichardBransonandAstronauts-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/RichardBransonandAstronauts-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/spaceflightnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/RichardBransonandAstronauts-678x452.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-36062\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Richard Branson and Virgin Galactic\u2019s first two astronauts. Credit: Virgin Galactic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><b><i>Email the author.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Follow Stephen Clark on Twitter: @StephenClark1.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Check out video highlights released by Virgin Galactic of Thursday\u2019s test flight by the company\u2019s SpaceShipTwo rocket plane to an altitude of 271,000 feet (82.7 kilometers), above a boundary recognized by the U.S. government as the edge of space. The air-dropped rocket plane took off from Mojave Air and Space Port in California under a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[291,1545,2806,2212,1693,1705,493,2652],"class_list":["post-13447","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-commercial-space","tag-human-spaceflight","tag-mark-stucky","tag-mojave-air-and-space-port","tag-richard-branson","tag-rick-sturckow","tag-space-tourism","tag-the-spaceship-company"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13447"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13447"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13447\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13447"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13447"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13447"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}