For years, movies, such as Interstellar, The Martian, and even Alien, have reveled in the thought of space travel inclusive of the civilian. Today, that vision has manifested in real life. Richard Branson and a small crew took their first trip to space on his Virgin Galactic spacecraft VSS Unity 22 early on Sunday. The billionaire made history when he took the test flight that lasted for about 59 minutes before landing at Spaceport America.
Branson beat his competition, which includes billionaires Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk who both have their own personal passenger spacecrafts, to the punch when he launched from New Mexico a little bit after 8 AM PST — although the launch was delayed due to extremely windy weather.
On the way through the atmosphere, the crew experienced weightlessness for three minutes when it reached its maximum altitude at 53 miles. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), U.S. Space Force and NASA acknowledge that space begins approximately at an altitude of 50 miles.
Watch the Launch Below
The rocket safely landed with a completely secure crew consisting of two pilots and three mission specialists. Musk flew to New Mexico to watch the takeoff, while Bezos sent well wishes on social media. Bezos is expected to also do his own launch on his Blue Origin spacecraft New Shepard on July 20.
About 700 people have already booked flights on the Virgin Galactic, scheduled to launch in 2022. Each seat costs an estimate of $250,000.
