Virgin Galactic unveils first SpaceShip III vehicle, 'Imagine'

Virgin Galactic has unveiled their first SpaceShip III vehicle and call it 'Imagine'... I am not so sure of design for reentry into Earth's atmosphere with its two wings, sideboard to the rocket engine compartment nor the shielding to prevent disintegration up on entering the atmosphere, but then again, this may be a vehicle that will be parked at an Earth station in orbit above Earth... I am sure that more details will be forthcoming...and sure enough, I found some additional details that indicate that this craft will be a suborbital one and delve into the far reaches of space... That may come later...

From Virgin Galactic:

"The company today (March 30) unveiled its second piloted space plane, a shiny silver vehicle called VSS Imagine.

Like Virgin Galactic's other spacecraft, VSS Unity, VSS Imagine is designed to take people and scientific experiments to and from suborbital space. However, the newcomer is the first of the next-generation SpaceShip III line, which features upgrades that will "enable improved performance in terms of maintenance access and flight rate," company representatives wrote in a statement today."

"All great achievements, creations and changes start with an idea," the billionaire entrepreneur added. "Our hope is for all those who travel to space to return with fresh perspectives and new ideas that will bring positive change to our planet."

VSS Unity is a SpaceShipTwo vehicle. SpaceShipOne, the design pioneer, won the $10 million Ansari X Prize in 2004 after making two crewed flights to suborbital space and back within a two-week span.

Unity and Imagine are two-pilot, six-passenger space planes designed to lift off beneath the wings of a carrier aircraft, which drops them at an altitude of about 50,000 feet (15,000 meters). At that point, each spacecraft's onboard rocket motor lights up, blasting it up to suborbital space.

Virgin Galactic passengers won't circle Earth like astronauts aboard the International Space Station do. But they will get to experience a few minutes of weightlessness and see the curve of Earth against the blackness of space. More than 600 people have booked a ride to date, at a price (most recently) of $250,000 per seat, company representatives have said.

It will be interesting to see the further development of RIchard Branson's vision...

Enjoy,
Kerry
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