How fast is spaceshiptwo

It seems like everyone is racing to get you into space, and all you need is some patience and a huge pile of disposable income. Private spaceflight firms like Blue Origin want to send people up in rockets that launch from Earth.

The space plane sits in the middle fuselage of the carrier, detaching when it reached the desired altitude.

Virgin Galactic only completed its first in-flight engine test back in April of this year. Before that, the craft just glided down from high altitude after its release from the carrier. It fired the RocketMotorTwo for a total of 42 seconds, reaching a speed of Mach 2. The second burn was several seconds longer than Whitesides said the day before would likely be the maximum burn time.

The payloads include experiments studying dust collisions in microgravity, multi-phase flow systems, systems for plant growth and vibration isolation systems. The payloads also allow Virgin Galactic to more closely simulate the mass of a typical flight, when the vehicle carries six spaceflight participants in addition to the two pilots, while providing another milestone for the company.

Virgin Galactic, when it announced its plans to develop a vehicle based on SpaceShipOne in September , originally anticipated beginning flights a decade ago.

Development delays, exacerbated by the October test flight accident that destroyed the first SpaceShipTwo and killed co-pilot Michael Alsbury, pushed back those plans. Virgin Galactic expects to move ahead with full-duration burns of the SpaceShipTwo motor, which would be about 60 seconds. And for the first time in flight, the SS2's pilots Mark Stucky and Clint Nichols -- of Scaled Composites , the aerospace manufacturer that also designed both the SS1 and SS2 -- tested the vehicle's "feathering re-entry system.

The ultimate goal is to keep the rocket engine burning for 70 seconds until SS2 hits 2, mph and a max altitude of , feet.

Let's hope the price drops dramatically in the next few years, so less successful teen pop sensations can get their chance to fly in space. Be respectful, keep it civil and stay on topic. We delete comments that violate our policy , which we encourage you to read. Discussion threads can be closed at any time at our discretion.