virgin Galactic | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net KitGuru.net - Tech News | Hardware News | Hardware Reviews | IOS | Mobile | Gaming | Graphics Cards Thu, 29 Jan 2015 13:19:59 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 https://www.kitguru.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/cropped-KITGURU-Light-Background-SQUARE2-32x32.png virgin Galactic | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net 32 32 NASA to go all American with its ISS crew flights by 2017 https://www.kitguru.net/channel/science/jon-martindale/nasa-to-go-all-american-with-its-iss-crew-flights-by-2017/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/science/jon-martindale/nasa-to-go-all-american-with-its-iss-crew-flights-by-2017/#comments Thu, 29 Jan 2015 12:54:47 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=233138 Space is becoming a far more commercial venture these days, with the likes of SpaceX, Boeing and Virgin Galactic all developing new, more efficient and cheaper ways to take people and cargo into orbit. However it's also been more commercial for NASA over the past few years, as since the Shuttle program was scrapped, it's …

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Space is becoming a far more commercial venture these days, with the likes of SpaceX, Boeing and Virgin Galactic all developing new, more efficient and cheaper ways to take people and cargo into orbit. However it's also been more commercial for NASA over the past few years, as since the Shuttle program was scrapped, it's had to sub-contract a lot of rocket launches to the Russians. By 2017 though, it hopes to halt that practice, instead handing the resupply and crew transport missions over to American companies.

Announced yesterday at a press conference at the Johnson Space Centre, NASA administrator Charles Bolden said that he hoped by 2017, all duties involving sending crew and cargo to the International Space Station would be handled by companies like SpaceX and Boeing. Essentially, NASA plans to hand over the efforts of expanding human endeavour in low-Earth-orbit, to commercial ventures and will focus its efforts on more long term goals and the murkier depths of space, like sending humans to Mars.

“I don't ever want to write another check to Roscosmos after 2017,” Bolden said.

bolden
Bolden himself was an astronaut during the '80s

It's not just patriotism that's driving this move though, but economics too. Currently sending up a single launch of either cargo or crew on Russian space craft costs NASA $70 million. Doing so with Space X's Dragon costs just $58 million and if Musk's company can get the landing right for its first stage automated recovery system, the costs could come down even further. The company is also working on a crew capsule recovery system which would involve landing on ground, rather than out at sea, making recovery much easier.

As The Register points out too, there are also political issues at play, as Putin's administration has become increasingly difficult to deal with.

However a lot more testing that needs to take place before Boeing or SpaceX get the gig officially. Before flying crew members, over 50 Dragon rocket launches will be performed, to make it as safe as possible before risking the lives of the world's finite supply of astronauts.

Discuss on our Facehbook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says:It's good to see that NASA doesn't see itself becoming less relevant. Along with the likes of the ESA, I hope it continues helping to push the boundaries of space travel.

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Virgin Galactic to resume test flights to space https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/virgin-galactic-to-resume-test-flights-to-space/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/virgin-galactic-to-resume-test-flights-to-space/#comments Tue, 21 Oct 2014 13:17:20 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=217675 Virgin Galactic is set to resume its rocket powered test flights, bringing consumer level space travel closer to reality after remaining fairly inactive throughout 2014. This means that passengers who made a $250,000 reservation to fly into space on a Virgin Galactic flight may not be left waiting too much longer. The most recent test …

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Virgin Galactic is set to resume its rocket powered test flights, bringing consumer level space travel closer to reality after remaining fairly inactive throughout 2014. This means that passengers who made a $250,000 reservation to fly into space on a Virgin Galactic flight may not be left waiting too much longer.

The most recent test flight took place on the 2nd of January of this year so quite some time has passed. In May, Virgin announced that it was changing the solid fuel used in the rocket motor due to engine instabilities. The space ships now use thermoplastic polyamide, which performs better and should allow the spaceship to achieve a higher altitude.

Virgin Galactic

Speaking with Space.com, Virgin Galactic CEO, George Whitesides, said: “We've done a lot of development tests over the years, but what we've been doing recently are qualification tests where you're firing the same motor design multiple times to make sure you're seeing the same thing every time. So now we feel ready to put that motor on the spaceship.”

SpaceShipTwo is designed to carry to pilots and six passengers. The ship is now qualified to increase stability from a suborbital flight by rotating its tail and wings. The ship has completed 54 test flights to date but none of these were ran with the new fuel, which has only been tested on the ground so far.

So far, more than 700 people have booked a flight with Virgin Galactic, many of these people are celebrities, which is to be expected considering the high reservation price.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: It's good to see virgin making headway when it comes to consumer level space travel. However, it's probably going to be a long time before regular people can afford a trip in to space. Would any of you guys take a Virgin Galactic flight in to space?

Via: Cnet

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Virgin Galactic get clearance for rocket test flights https://www.kitguru.net/channel/science/colin-beatty/virgin-galactic-get-clearance-for-rocket-test-flights/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/science/colin-beatty/virgin-galactic-get-clearance-for-rocket-test-flights/#respond Thu, 31 May 2012 07:19:25 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=92924 Virgin Galactic have been working hard to offer members of the public the opportunity to travel into space onboard a rocket powered craft. Their partner Scaled Composites have been granted an experimental permit from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). This is the first step in getting their dream a reality. No details have yet been …

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Virgin Galactic have been working hard to offer members of the public the opportunity to travel into space onboard a rocket powered craft. Their partner Scaled Composites have been granted an experimental permit from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). This is the first step in getting their dream a reality.

No details have yet been released to detail when the public will be able to pay for the travel, however the test programme already involves some famous names. Actor Ashton Kutcher signed up with Virgin Galactic so he could experience the weightlessness experience during suborbital flight.

The first craft, SpaceShipTwo is air launched from a twin fuselage carrier aeroplane. Once it is separated from the aeroplan, SpaceShipTwo will fire the rocket engine and launch into suborbital flight. The companies are now working to get the rocket motor integrated into SpaceShipTwo, a six passenger craft owned by Virgin Galactic.

Scaled Composites won the $10 million Ansari X Prize in 2004 for SpaceShipOne, now on display in the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum in Washington.

Richard Branson and his company Virgin Group, owns part of Virgin Galactic, alongside Aabar Investments PJS. They hired designer Burt Rutan to create a fleet of space craft for commercial use.

Kitguru says: The cost will be prohibitive for members of the public, but some people will be willing to pay for the exciting suborbital experience.

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Book your place in space with Virgin Galactic https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jules/book-your-place-in-space-with-virgin-galactic/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jules/book-your-place-in-space-with-virgin-galactic/#comments Mon, 11 Oct 2010 08:15:45 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=19582 Virgin Galactic, the company owned by mogul Richard Branson  has successfully completed its first live ‘demo', successfully dropping a rocketplane from 45,000 feet to make a glide landing. Richard Branson said “I watched the world’s first manned commercial spaceship landing on the runway at Mojave Air and Space Port and it was a great moment, …

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Virgin Galactic, the company owned by mogul Richard Branson  has successfully completed its first live ‘demo', successfully dropping a rocketplane from 45,000 feet to make a glide landing.

Richard Branson said “I watched the world’s first manned commercial spaceship landing on the runway at Mojave Air and Space Port and it was a great moment, Now, the sky is no longer the limit and we will begin the process of pushing beyond to the final frontier of space itself over the next year.”

The system works via two craft, the VMS (Virgin Mother Ship) Eve, and the VSS (Virgin Space Ship) Enterprise. The VMS drops the VSS after reaching 45,000 feet and the passengers glide slowly down to earth for the landing. Pilots Mike Alsbury and Pete Siebold successfully achieved the test landing at the Mojave runway.

Virgin Galactic have opened their own site with information on how to book your place in space via their ‘accredited Space Agents'.

“Our challenge going forward will be to complete our experimental program, obtain our FAA licence and safely bring the system into service,” said Virgin Galactic CEO George Whitesides.

KitGuru says: Fancy a trip to the outer reaches of our atmosphere? be prepared to dig deep into your bank balance.

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