Artist conception of WhiteKnightTwo and SpaceShipTwo in flight (credit: Virgin Galactic)
In an interview with BBC Sport, Virgin Galactic CEO Richard Branson said that the first passengers will fly aboard his SpaceShipTwo suborbital vehicle in mid-2011:
Exterior view of Bigelow Aerospace's Genesis II
PRESS RELEASE
Genesis II, the second prototype expandable space habitat launched by Bigelow Aerospace on June 28, 2007, has completed its 10,000th orbit around the Earth. Following the first spacecraft Genesis I, this unmanned vehicle demonstrates the continued development of future space stations technologies.
The 'Zero-G" Airbus A300
ESA’s Education Office is offering European students the flights of a lifetime with the 2010 call for proposals for the “Fly your Thesis! –An Astronaut Experience†programme.
ESA PRESS RELEASE
There’s no shower on the ISS. Do you know how astronauts manage to keep themselves clean? There’s no up or down in space. How do astronauts adapt to this environment?
Instead of searching the Internet – why not directly ask those who know best? ESA astronaut Frank De Winne is keen to personally answer your questions via ESA’s YouTube channel.
Ares 1-X undergoing assembly
Pratt Rocketdyne taking technology from Cold War to moon
Journal Inquirer
In a space-age version of beating swords into plowshares, East Hartford-based Pratt & Whitney’s Rocketdyne division is working with NASA to convert Cold War rocket technology into the next-generation moon mission launch vehicle.
Students shoot for the moon in spacecraft contest
The Exponent (Purdue University)
After a semester of hard work and dedication, AAE 450 students are finally reaping the rewards. Students, faculty and a representative from NASA gathered Thursday morning to hear how the Project Xpedition Design Team plans to develop, test and fly the spacecraft they spent all semester designing.
A Russian Soyuz spacecraft in orbit
NASA might be altering its plans to rely solely on Russian Soyuz taxi flights to send its astronauts to the International Space Station after the agency retires the space shuttle next year.
PRESS RELEASE
Moog Inc. (NYSE: MOG.A) (NYSE: MOG.B) today announced second quarter earnings of $23.7 million, and earnings per share of $.55, down 17% from last year’s second quarter. Sales of $453 million were down 3% from a year ago. This is the first quarter in 14 years that the Company has been unable to report an increase in quarterly earnings. The Company’s situation reflects the impact of the global economic recession, particularly as it affects the Company’s industrial business in Europe and Asia.
More thoughts about issues relating to Virgin Galactic’s and Scaled Composite’s WhiteKnightTwo space tourism plane.
Virgin Galactic will announce the identity of its first Australian space tourist on Monday in Sydney.
A giant leap for the Tweet: NASA Astronaut Mike Massimino (@Astro_Mike) is set to become for first human to Twitter from space.
NASA astronaut says he will Twitter from space
Computer World
A NASA astronaut today said he’ll be Twittering from the space shuttle Atlantis next month as it travels to and from its mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope.
Starchaser's Nova 2 rocket, which may carry tourists into space.
Starchaser Industries brought its 58-foot Nova 2 rocket to Acle High School in Norfolk on Wednesday, giving students a chance to see a vehicle that might one day lift tourists into space.
