Richard Branson Has Completed A Historic Trip To The Edge Of Space On Virgin Galactic

https://www.npr.org/2021/07/11/ [login to see] /richard-branson-has-completed-a-historic-trip-to-the-edge-of-space-on-virgin-gal
Sir Richard Branson and a crew of three others grazed the edge of space on Sunday in a rocket built by the British billionaire's company, Virgin Galactic. The flight ushers in a new chapter in the world of aeronautics, with Virgin Galactic among a handful of ambitious and well-funded ventures racing to commercialize travel to space.

Lifting off from Spaceport America in Las Cruces, N.M., — a commercial space flight center about 180 miles south of Albuquerque —Branson was among a crew of four "mission specialists" who reached speeds three times the speed of sound.

The spacecraft, which was attached to a larger plane, taxied across a runway at Spaceport America before lifting off at about 8:40 a.m. local time.

As the mothership — manned by two pilots — approached more than 46,000 feet above the earth's surface, Virgin Galactic live streamed a video of vignettes about the vessel, interviews with NASA astronauts and other material hosted by late night comedian Stephen Colbert.

The ascent to the launch — where the mothership released the Galactic Unity 22 — lasted nearly 50 minutes. Once detached, an on-board rocket was engaged, shooting Galactic Unity 22 to a peak altitude of more than 282,000 feet.