Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

X-Prize Cup Site Chosen: New Mexico

Posted by timothy on from the mutton-stew-and-frybread-and-oxidizers dept.

savuporo writes "MSNBC reports: "The X Prize Foundation and the New Mexico Office of Space Commercialization are joining forces to stage the multifaceted X Prize Cup, a two-week-long event that allows for privately financed, passenger-carrying space vehicles to compete for prizes.' The first Cup is expected to be held summer, 2006, while 2005 will probably see a 'Public Spaceflight Exposition.'"

8 of 144 comments (clear)

  1. Golly by z0ink · · Score: 5, Funny

    I wonder how many UFO chasers will come out of the woodwork when some metal falls from the sky.

    --
    Steal This Sig
  2. X-Prize takes the lead by qaffle · · Score: 5, Funny
    Watch, X-Prize contestants are going to make it into space before NASA does again.

    And going up with the Russians doesn't count.

  3. safety factors? by complete+loony · · Score: 5, Insightful
    "We expect to draw hundreds of thousands of people from around the world to a single Spaceport".

    Um, ok. and they'll all stand nearby while high powered rockets, designed and built by just about anybody, take off and land... mmmmm that sounds safe.

    I hope the viewing area is as far away as during shuttle launches.

    Seriously, should we be considering something like this yet? with passengers and spectators?

    --
    09F91102 no, 455FE104 nope, F190A1E8 uh-uh, 7A5F8A09 that's not it, C87294CE no. Ah! 452F6E403CDF10714E41DFAA257D313F.
  4. makes sense by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Makes sense, considering that Goddard was launching sophisticated liquid-fueled rockets outside of Roswell prior to World War 2, and of course, White Sands Missile Range is also in New Mexico. Also, New Mexico is (imho) the most beautiful state in the United States, but also one of the poorest. It needs a boost like this.

    --
    SKYKING, SKYKING, DO NOT ANSWER

  5. A Wretched Hive of Scum and Villainy by Silvrmane · · Score: 5, Funny

    And Santa Fe kinda looks like Mos Eisley as you are driving into it in your Land Speeder. Perfect place for a space port. :)

    --
    planet texture maps and more
  6. Re:Whoa, slow down there... by jjeffries · · Score: 5, Funny

    It's a marketing gimmick. They're going to wait for the public outcry then bring it back as "Mexico Classic."

  7. What an Honor! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    To the Governor of New Mexico:

    Dear Sir or Madam,

    Congratulations! New Mexico has been determined to be sufficiently desolate and barren enough that the possibility of launchpad explosions and space debris raining from the sky pose little or no threat to the general population of your great state. Therefore, we are pleased to annouce that we are awarding the X-Prize Competition Site to New Mexico. We also looked at a small, uninhabited atoll in the Pacific Ocean but we found that it would be cost-prohibitive to provide portable toilets at that location on such short notice.

    Yours,

    The X-Prize Competition Site Selection Committee

  8. Re:The Only Problem... by Fan+of+Damocles · · Score: 5, Informative

    Teams competing for the X-Prize ARE starting out small. The spaceship required to win the competition only needs to carry 3 people. The competition can be won by a ship carrying only one pilot and ballast representing the other two passengers.

    As far as I know, Scaled Composites is the only team carrying out manned tests of their vehicle so far. They're following a careful test program, slowly expanding their flight envelope, and are taking no unnecessary risks.

    For another team's perspective, check Armadillo's website for a great log of all the testing and refining they've been doing while developing their rocket.

    Bottom line: The teams with a shot at winning are not jumping into rocketry without careful attention to safety. No one wants to see fatalities or explosions of any kind - they're bad for business.