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Virgin Galactic Unveils SpaceShipTwo
BoulderDad writes, "Richard Branson presented a mock-up of the new SpaceShipTwo in New York. From the article: 'Future passengers aboard Virgin Galactic spaceliners can look forward to cushioned reclining seats and lots of windows during suborbital flights aboard SpaceShipTwo, a concept interior of which was unveiled by British entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson Thursday.' The video is worth watching; the spaceport details are more concept than reality, but the depiction of the phases of space flight is very good."
Where's the overhead bin space? I'm gonna have to board early to find space for my rollerboard!
From TFA:
"If you're going to build a spaceship, you've got to build a green spaceship," Branson said, adding that the carbon dioxide output from a single spaceflight is on par with those of a business class seat aboard commercial aircraft.
So, they aren't going to pollute much at all. As for being for rich people only, well, that's generally how new technologies work. Commercial air travel was, at the beginning, a luxurious way for the wealthy to travel. New technologies are expensive, and tend to be geared at first toward people who can afford them. As these flights become routine, and as the technology improves (and especially as competition enters the market), prices will fall.
Its one thing to get to some altitude, and back.
But when will private industry make it into orbit and back.
You need that if you want to stay for more then free fall.
Its the speed of orbit, and reentry from that speed, that makes this hard.
A real space tourist will want to stay a while.
As for several minutes of weightlessness, you can get
that from conventional aircraft.
Tell me this thing doesn't put you in mind of a big cartoon dog.
I thought it looked more like a sleek, white running shoe, but that's pretty improbable.
No folly is more costly than the folly of intolerant idealism. - Winston Churchill
So, they aren't going to pollute much at all.
FTA: Launched from 60,000 feet.
I don't suppose they're lauching these ships by these energy friendly means.
More like they latch this bugger onto a jet, take off with it and then launch the space ship from it. Can't say that sounds as efficient an ordinary old business class jet.
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
Passengers will have several minutes of weightlessness during the spaceflight, and then have about 40 seconds to return to their seats
200K for "several minutes" in space? Sorry, I'll wait until 2010 for Bigelow's space hotel.
I get the shotgun seat!
You can have it.
I saw Burt Rutan (the craft designer) talking at the Oshkosh EAA convention a couple months ago. He explained how they plan to allow exactly that. The typical SpaceShip 2 Flight will have 8 people on board... That's one Virgin pilot, and 7 "revenue" seats. 6 passengers will typically show up just a day or two before their flight for some brief training. The seventh guest will pay a lot more, and will arrive 2-3 months before the flight for extensive training. They will be the official co-pilot for their flight.
I'm sure you will need to be a licensed pilot going in, so start working on that training now!
First against the wall when the revolution comes
Galactic Virgins, found most notably in parents basements and Star Trek conventions nation-wide.
The 1st zero-G porno is gonna rake it in.
I agree that far too little is done about global hunger and poverty. The socialist in me thinks rich countries should find ways to help people so they don't suffer. However...
When was the last time you went out to eat?
Have you ever spent $20 on a good meal? $40? $100?
If so, for the price of your one meal, dozens of hungry people could have been fed. Using your logic, I'd say everyone should only eat the least expensive foods they can get their hands on, never have any entertainment expenses (you don't buy games, do you?) and give all of their non-necessity income to the poor.
Somehow, I don't think you're doing that. And you shouldn't.
There aren't many good answers for getting around the system and feeding the world's hungry, but "rich people shouldn't spend their money on things they want to buy" is at the bottom of the barrel. Unless you're willing to make the same sacrifices in your everyday life, I wouldn't expect others to - it's really just a drop in the bucket either way.
But first, you need to have somewhere to go. After you go through the 1,000 people on the planet that can afford to do this AND want to do this for fun
I just had an image of a slashdotter from last century saying the same thing to the wright brothers...
The linked article only shows the photos of a mockup of SS2's interior. The coverage over at Gizmodo includes some images from Virgin Galactic which show the conceptual design for the exterior of SpaceShipTwo:
e s-of-virgin-galactic-spaceshiptwo-cabin-203802.php
http://www.gizmodo.com/gadgets/gadgets/first-imag
One of the images compares the size of SpaceShipTwo to other vehicles, such as SpaceShipOne, the Bell X-1, and a Boeing 747.
Great where can I get a ride on one - oh, only if I am one of a handful of jet pilots in the Air force or government space program.
Sure there is - because it can and will be completed within the next decade, unlike the private man-to-orbit projects under way. It will also likely be much more affordable than the orbital trips, even when they do come to fruition. Bungee jumping will never scale to orbital velocities, but that does not make it worthless.
Yeah, and damn that rafting company who scammed me out of $50 by providing a desired service in exchange for a mutually agreed upon sum. Dirty Capitalists.
That was the whole point of the X-prize. It was never intended to go towards orbit, and the hope was that it would lead to a commercial venture. The people who provided the money for the X-prize don't feel cheated, and are very happy about Branson's deal with Rutan to develop it into profitable business.
Oh, and you people bitching about the environmental impact need to get some perspective. There are thousands of flights across the world every day, and millions of vehicles being driven and thousands of coal plants spewing CO2 and soot. And you are worried about the pollution that one sub-orbital launch a week is going to do.
Seriously, I am used to people on slashdot being critical jerks, but this thread is ridiculous. Rutan is an excellent high-performance plane designer, and rather than sitting around bitching about how he wished there were private alternatives to get into space, he took what knew and did something about it. In just a few more years he will be providing an opportunity to people that has never existed before, and which no one will match for many more years to come. You may not think it is worth the price, but thousands of other people do, and are more than willing to pay the $250,000 to get a glimpse of space. Sure I would prefer to see an orbital trip. But I will always be far more excited to see concrete progress in the present, no matter how small, than I will be to dream about vaporware.
... some people will definitely want more. And companies will be way more willing to invest once the business model is proven.