{"id":19460,"date":"2016-02-19T22:36:40","date_gmt":"2016-02-19T14:36:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/vss-unity-virgin-galactic-christens-a-reborn-spaceshiptwo-with-assist-from-stephen-hawking\/"},"modified":"2016-02-19T22:36:40","modified_gmt":"2016-02-19T14:36:40","slug":"vss-unity-virgin-galactic-christens-a-reborn-spaceshiptwo-with-assist-from-stephen-hawking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/vss-unity-virgin-galactic-christens-a-reborn-spaceshiptwo-with-assist-from-stephen-hawking\/","title":{"rendered":"VSS Unity: Virgin Galactic christens a reborn SpaceShipTwo, with assist from Stephen Hawking"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"SpaceShipTwo
Virgin Galactic\u2019s second SpaceShipTwo rocket plane, dubbed the VSS Unity, rolls out under the spotlights at the company\u2019s hangar in Mojave, Calif. (GeekWire photo by Alan Boyle)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

MOJAVE, Calif. <\/strong>\u2013 Sixteen months after Virgin Galactic\u2019s first SpaceShipTwo rocket plane was lost amid tragedy, the second SpaceShipTwo was christened Virgin Spaceship Unity today with a smashed bottle of milk and a big gulp of celebrity glitz.<\/p>\n

Hundreds of employees, VIPs and would-be spacefliers gathered for the craft\u2019s official rollout at the Final Assembly, Integration and Test Hangar, or FAITH, here at the Mojave Air and Space Port. And although British theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking couldn\u2019t attend the ceremony in person, he read out the rocket plane\u2019s new name in an audio clip.<\/p>\n

<\/span> Space exploration has already been a great unifier.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are entering a new space age, and I hope this will help to create a new unity,\u201d said Hawking, who has been guaranteed a free spaceflight if he\u2019s up to it when VSS Unity enters service. \u201cSpace exploration has already been a great unifier. We seem able to cooperate between nations in space, in a way we can only envy on Earth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then Virgin Galactic\u2019s founder, British billionaire Richard Branson, arranged for the official christening to be done by his granddaughter, Eva Deia, who was born exactly one year ago today.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m pretty sure a 1-year-old has never christened a spaceship before, so we really are in virgin territory,\u201d Branson quipped. \u201cToday seems to the right time to change that, as we after all are celebrating the birth of two gorgeous ladies.\u201d<\/p>\n

Branson said it was more appropriate for an infant to christen the craft with a milk bottle than with a Champagne bottle, even though Champagne wine \u201cnever did me any harm.\u201d With an assist from her mom and dad, Eva Deia broke the bottle over Unity\u2019s nose.<\/p>\n

Far from crying over spilt milk, Branson topped off the celebration by bringing soprano and would-be Virgin Galactic spaceflier Sarah Brightman up to the dais to lead the crowd in a chorus of \u201cHappy Birthday\u201d for Eva Deia.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=1Eahj_H5gVw&feature=youtu.be<\/p>\n

Virgin Galactic and its manufacturing operation, The Spaceship Company, have been working on VSS Unity since well before the first SpaceShipTwo, known as VSS Enterprise, was lost during a rocket-powered test flight in October 2014. Co-pilot Michael Alsbury was killed in the breakup. Pilot Pete Siebold was injured as he was thrown clear of the disintegrating craft for a parachute descent.<\/p>\n

Investigators determined that the plane broke up due to aerodynamic stresses when Alsbury unlocked a wing-pivoting brake system prematurely. The National Transportation Safety Board also pointed out shortcomings in SpaceShipTwo\u2019s safety systems and training procedures.<\/p>\n

Virgin Galactic says those shortcomings have been addressed for the new rocket plane. For example, a mechanical pin assembly has been added to the controls to keep the wings from being unlocked at the wrong time. Some of the cockpit instruments have been redesigned, and pilot procedures have been changed to reduce the risk of making a wrong move.<\/p>\n

Doug Shane, the president of The Spaceship Company, paid tribute to Alsbury during today\u2019s ceremony. \u201cHardly a day goes by that I don\u2019t think of Mike and his family,\u201d he said. \u201cI know he believed in this mission, and this technology, and this vehicle design. We\u2019ve made this a better and safer system, because making a better and safer system was what Mike was all about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other changes were made to improve SpaceShipTwo\u2019s aerodynamics and streamline production, but for the most part, the second plane is a carbon copy of the first. \u201cIf you looked at Serial No. 1 and Serial No. 2 under the hood, you couldn\u2019t tell the difference,\u201d Shane told reporters before the rollout.<\/p>\n