Virgin Galactic has successfully flown the first commercial suborbital flight

Virgin Galactic has successfully completed the Galactic 01 mission. The company was thus able to make its first commercial suborbital flight.

Here's What We Know

The Galactic 01 mission was commissioned by the Italian National Research Council and the Italian Air Force. The mission involved 13 scientific experiments. One of them was to study the effects of microgravity on the human body.

On 29 June at 11:30 (EDT) or 08:30 (PDT), SpaceShipTwo carrying the VSS Unity rocket took off from New Mexico's America Spaceport. Fifty-nine minutes after liftoff, the spacecraft separated and continued to gain altitude using the rocket engine.

VSS Unity was able to cross the space boundary into the USA. The spacecraft climbed to an altitude of 85.1 above the surface of our planet, then began moving in the opposite direction. One hour and 13 minutes after liftoff, it landed at the launch site.

Virgin Galactic's first commercial mission involved two aeroplane pilots, two space shuttle pilots and four crew members. Among the latter, two are members of the Italian Air Force.

Virgin Galactic wants to build a large fleet of spacecraft for regular flights. The company intends to fly up to 400 missions a year and says about 800 people have already booked seats. The cost is $250,000 to $450,000.

Source: SpaceNews