Photo: virgingalactic.com
First mission — Galactic 01, which is scheduled to launch from June 27 to 30, — will be mainly research. The company says three crew members from the Italian Air Force and the Italian National Research Council will be on board. The purpose of this space trip is to study microgravity.
After the first takeoff in June, the next flight, called Galactic 02, will take place in early August and will begin a monthly series of commercial flights. The first private astronauts will fly into space, their names were not disclosed.
Photo: virgingalactic.com
Virgin Galactic launch pad is a 70 sq. km. Spaceport “America” is located in New Mexico, about 275 km south of Albuquerque, the state's largest city.
Virgin Galactic, founded by Richard Branson, calls itself “the world's first commercial space company.” and aims to unite people who love space travel. The company makes its flights on the Unity spacecraft. The base ticket price is $450,000.