SpaceShipTwo performs first powered flight
Posted: Tue, Apr 30, 2013, 8:14 AM ET (1214 GMT)
Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo commercial suborbital spacecraft flew its first flight under rocket power on Monday, a brief test that sent the winged vehicle past the sound barrier. SpaceShipTwo, carried aloft by its WhiteKnightTwo carrier aircraft, separated from the plane and ignited its hybrid rocket motor for a 16-second burn about 45 minutes after a 7:02 am PDT (1402 GMT) takeoff from the Mojave Air and Space Port in California. The rocket burn sent SpaceShipTwo to an altitude of about 16,800 meters and a speed of Mach 1.2 before gliding to a runway landing in Mojave. The flight was the first time SpaceShipTwo had flown under rocket power, after extensive glide tests of the spacecraft and ground-based rocket engine tests. Virgin Galactic is planning a series of test flights leading up to a full-fledged suborbital spaceflight by the end of the year, with commercial service to begin next year.
Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo commercial suborbital spacecraft flew its first flight under rocket power on Monday, a brief test that sent the winged vehicle past the sound barrier. SpaceShipTwo, carried aloft by its WhiteKnightTwo carrier aircraft, separated from the plane and ignited its hybrid rocket motor for a 16-second burn about 45 minutes after a 7:02 am PDT (1402 GMT) takeoff from the Mojave Air and Space Port in California. The rocket burn sent SpaceShipTwo to an altitude of about 16,800 meters and a speed of Mach 1.2 before gliding to a runway landing in Mojave. The flight was the first time SpaceShipTwo had flown under rocket power, after extensive glide tests of the spacecraft and ground-based rocket engine tests. Virgin Galactic is planning a series of test flights leading up to a full-fledged suborbital spaceflight by the end of the year, with commercial service to begin next year.
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