Scaled Composites Tier Two - Spacecraft - SpaceShip Two

SpaceShip Two

Sir Richard Branson unveiled the rocket plane on December 7, 2009. SpaceShipTwo was presented to the world in the Mojave desert, in California. The vehicle underwent testing during the following 18 months before being allowed to take ticketed individuals on short-hop trips just above the atmosphere. Sir Richard Branson, who heads the Virgin Group, intends to run the first flights out of New Mexico before extending operations around the globe. Built from lightweight carbon composite materials and powered by a hybrid rocket motor, SS2 is based on the Ansari X PRIZE-winning SpaceShipOne concept - a rocket plane that is lifted initially by a carrier vehicle before blasting skywards. SS1 became the world's first private spaceship with a series of high-altitude flights in 2004.

Its successor is twice as large, measuring 18 m (60 ft) in length. Whereas SpaceShipOne only had a single pilot (and the ballast equivalent of two passengers), SS2 will have a crew of two and room for six passengers. More than 400 people are reported to have signed up for a flight as of early 2011. Each is paying $200,000 (£121,000) to experience approximately six minutes of weightlessness during what will be a two-hour end-to-end flight. Many of those future "astronauts" have attended the VIP unveiling at the Mojave Air and Spaceport. Former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and former New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson christened the spaceliner Virgin SpaceShip (VSS) Enterprise.

The New Mexico authorities are investing almost $200m (£121m) in a purpose-built facility in Sierra County, New Mexico, Spaceport America. It will have a 3,000m (10,000 ft) runway and a space-age terminal and hangar building designed by Foster and Partners. Sir Richard's Virgin Galactic enterprise will have competitors but he is almost certain to be the first to market, barring any problems arising in the test campaign. SpaceShipTwo's carrier plane is called WhiteKnightTwo. It was finished in 2008 and has already begun its own trials.