Photo: Virgin Galactic
Back in February, Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity flew beyond the Earth-space boundary for the second time in less than three months. On board were three people, pilots Dave Mackay and Mike Masucci, and the company’s chief instructor, Beth Moses. All three have now been awarded Commercial Astronaut Wings by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
The event took place this week during the 35th National Space Symposium in Colorado Springs. The three astronauts are now part of a limited 7-people group to get the recognition, and Beth Moses the first woman in the history of commercial spaceflight to do so.
“It was an honor to receive my Commercial Astronaut Wings today,” Beth Moses said after the event.
“Since the flight, we have been assessing the findings from my cabin evaluations; I’m excited by what the results are showing and looking forward to incorporating what we learned into our cabin outfitting and astronaut training program.”
Virgin Galactic likes to say the two test flights of the Unity into space marked the first time astronauts launched toward the edge of space from American soil since the retirement of the space shuttles in 2011.
Debatable as that belief might be, the achievement of Richard Branson’s company marks a step in an entirely new direction for space exploration: space tourism.
That fact, combined with the ability of VSS Unity to launch horizontally from under the belly of a carrier craft might significantly enrich the list of means by which humans can leave this planet.
The findings of Unity’s last flight are currently being evaluated as the ship awaits its next launch into space, perhaps with Branson on board. Virgin Galactic’s ship can eventually carry six passengers and two crew.
When fully operational, it will be used to provide minutes-long trips into space to tourists willing to pay around $200,000 for a ticket.
“It was an honor to receive my Commercial Astronaut Wings today,” Beth Moses said after the event.
“Since the flight, we have been assessing the findings from my cabin evaluations; I’m excited by what the results are showing and looking forward to incorporating what we learned into our cabin outfitting and astronaut training program.”
Virgin Galactic likes to say the two test flights of the Unity into space marked the first time astronauts launched toward the edge of space from American soil since the retirement of the space shuttles in 2011.
Debatable as that belief might be, the achievement of Richard Branson’s company marks a step in an entirely new direction for space exploration: space tourism.
That fact, combined with the ability of VSS Unity to launch horizontally from under the belly of a carrier craft might significantly enrich the list of means by which humans can leave this planet.
The findings of Unity’s last flight are currently being evaluated as the ship awaits its next launch into space, perhaps with Branson on board. Virgin Galactic’s ship can eventually carry six passengers and two crew.
When fully operational, it will be used to provide minutes-long trips into space to tourists willing to pay around $200,000 for a ticket.
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