SPACESHIPONE ROCKETS IN NEW ERA SKY'S NO LIMIT ON PRIVATE INITIATIVE.Byline: Jim Skeen and Charles F. Bostwick Staff Writers MOJAVE - A red, white and blue rocket plane rocket plane n. 1. An aircraft powered by one or more rocket engines. 2. An aircraft designed to carry and launch rockets. zoomed into space Monday, winning a $10 million prize as the world's first privately built reusable spacecraft and heralding the future of commercial space travel. SpaceShipOne designer Burt Rutan Elbert Leander "Burt" Rutan (born June 17, 1943 in Estacada, Oregon) is an American aerospace engineer noted for his originality in designing light, strong, unusual-looking, energy-efficient aircraft. is already turning his energy toward SpaceShipTwo, which a flamboyant British tycoon wants to develop to carry passengers by decade's end. ``It's the launch of a new era - the personal space flight revolution,'' said Peter Diamandis Peter H. Diamandis (born 20 May 1961 in Bronx, New York) is considered a key American figure in the development of the personal spaceflight industry, having created many space-related businesses or organizations. , founder of the X Prize Foundation, the St. Louis-based organization that offered the $10 million prize to spur private space efforts. With former Navy pilot Brian Binnie William Brian Binnie (born 1953) is one of the test pilots for SpaceShipOne, the experimental spaceplane developed by Scaled Composites. Binnie was born in West Lafayette, Indiana, where his Scottish father was a professor of physics at Purdue University. at the controls, Rutan's rocket plane zoomed upward over the Mojave Desert Mojave or Mohave Desert, c.15,000 sq mi (38,850 sq km), region of low, barren mountains and flat valleys, 2,000 to 5,000 ft (610–1,524 m) high, S Calif.; part of the Great Basin of the United States. to nearly 70 miles, topping by more than seven miles the altitude it had to reach to win the Ansari X Prize The Ansari X PRIZE was a space competition in which the X PRIZE Foundation offered a US$10,000,000 prize for the first non-government organization to launch a reusable manned spacecraft into space twice within two weeks. . Binnie released a paper model of SpaceShipOne to float around the cockpit, and he took photos of his view of Earth, with its curvature visible against the dark sky. ``It's a fantastic view,'' Binnie said. ``It's a fantastic feeling.'' Mike Melvill Michael Winston "Mike" Melvill (born November 1941) is one of the test pilots for SpaceShipOne, the experimental spaceplane developed by Scaled Composites. Melvill piloted SpaceShipOne on its first flight past the edge of space, flight 15P on June 21, 2004, thus becoming the first , who flew SpaceShipOne's two previous space flights, piloted the White Knight White Knight falls off his horse every time it stops. [Br. Lit.: Lewis Carroll Through the Looking-Glass] See : Awkwardness White Knight invents clever objects that never work. [Br. Lit. mother ship that lifted the rocket plane to more than 40,000 feet for its launch. Back at Mojave Airport, after what was described as a flawless flight, Binnie was greeted by Rutan; Microsoft billionaire Paul Allen
Paul Gardner Allen (born January 21, 1953 in Seattle, Washington) is an American entrepreneur. With Bill Gates, he formed Microsoft. , the project's financial backer; and Sir Richard Branson Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson (born 18 July 1950 in Shamley Green, Surrey, England), is a British entrepreneur, best known for his Virgin brand of over 360 , the Virgin Atlantic airlines founder who plans to use Rutan's technology for the world's first commercial spaceliner. ``It's been a magnificent achievement,'' Branson said. ``In three years from now, Burt has promised to deliver a five-seat spacecraft to take people into space.'' While Rutan's famous Voyager went to the Smithsonian Institute's Air and Space Museum after its circled the globe on one tank of gas in 1986, SpaceShipOne is unlikely to go into retirement. Rutan said it will probably be used to research technology for the spaceliner. ``After Voyager, we had a milestone, and we had nowhere to go. The difference with this program, thanks to Sir Richard Branson: We have the milestone and our challenge in front of us, and we've only begun,'' Rutan said at an after-flight news conference. Big business is already joining in the space revolution. Beverage-maker 7UP announced that it will host a contest next year to award a free ticket into space on one of Branson's first Virgin Galactic Virgin Galactic is a company within Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group, which plans to offer sub-orbital spaceflights and later orbital spaceflights to the paying public. Mission spaceflights. To encourage the 25 other teams that had registered in X Prize competition to keep working on their spacecraft, the foundation and New Mexico New Mexico, state in the SW United States. At its northwestern corner are the so-called Four Corners, where Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah meet at right angles; New Mexico is also bordered by Oklahoma (NE), Texas (E, S), and Mexico (S). state government are planning a 2006 space race offering cash prizes. ``The goal is to keep the teams competing,'' Diamandis said. ``It's insufficient to have a monopoly again. We need a competitive market.'' The success of his 135-employee Scaled Composites company in building a spacecraft will encourage others to try, Rutan predicted, just as Wilbur Wright's 1909 demonstration flight - in an aircraft that he and his brother, Wilbur, built - inspired aircraft building in dozens of nations. ``The fact that he was only a bicycle-shop guy led the world to believe 'I can do this,''' Rutan said. After the flight, Rutan took a few shots at NASA NASA: see National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA in full National Aeronautics and Space Administration Independent U.S. , which he called ``that other space agency,'' and the traditional aerospace community. ``I think they're looking at each other and saying, 'We're screwed.' I have a helluva hell·uv·a adj. Slang Used as an intensive: He's a helluva great guy. [Alteration of hell of a.] lot bigger goal than they do. I absolutely have to develop a manned space-tourism system for Sir Richard Branson that's at least 100 times safer than anything that has ever flown man to space.'' Flying out of the Mojave Airport on a calm, picture-perfect day, Binnie guided SpaceShipOne to an altitude of 367,400 feet just before 8 a.m., then safely returned to the cheers of thousands of spectators. While Melvill's Sept. 9 spaceflight was marked by the rocket plane's making 29 rolls near the top of its arc into space, none of that happened Monday, officials said. The only awkward moment of the day came before the flight, when Binnie's mother-in-law spilled an extra-large cup of McDonald's coffee down his flight suit while giving him a hug. The $10 million Ansari X Prize purse, along with a trophy, will be officially awarded Nov. 6 at the St. Louis Science Center The St. Louis Science Center is a science museum with its facilities in St. Louis, Missouri and a member of the Association of Science and Technology Centers. It is among the largest of its type and, like all science centers, is intended to be a place of informal science education . The prize money will be split between Allen and Rutan. Rutan said every member of his Scaled Composites team will get a share of that money. The prize will be paid by a special insurance policy. The premium for the policy was paid by Anousheh Ansari, a telecommunications entrepreneur in Texas and a board member of the X Prize Foundation. To earn the prize, the SpaceShipOne team had to conduct two spaceflights of more than 100 kilometers - 62 miles - within a two-week period. SpaceShipOne made two suborbital suborbital /sub·or·bi·tal/ (sub-or´bi-t'l) infraorbital. sub·or·bit·al adj. Situated on or below the floor of the orbit of the eye. n. flights in less than a week - after one as a test on June 21. In addition to its pilot, the spacecraft had to carry the equivalent weight of two passengers. ``We're starting a new space age,'' said former space shuttle astronaut Rick Searfoss, who served as the competition's chief judge. ``We're taking the blinders blind·er n. 1. blinders A pair of leather flaps attached to a horse's bridle to curtail side vision. Also called blinkers. 2. Something that serves to obscure clear perception and discernment. off and seeing the possibilities.'' Allen, who said he hasn't decided whether he'll join Rutan and Branson as passengers on the first Virgin Galactic space flight, said SpaceShipOne's accomplishment was a stunning technical achievement. ``It's a very exciting, rewarding day,'' Allen said. ``Hopefully, we'll be in space before we know it.'' Jim Skeen, (661) 267-5743 james.skeen(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 5 photos, box Photo: (1 -- color -- ran in Valley edition only) SpaceShipOne separates from the mother ship Monday over the Mojave Desert. (2 -- ran in Valley edition only) Showing off the American flag are, from left, X Prize founder Peter Diamandis, financier Paul Allen, designer Burt Rutan and pilot Brian Binnie. British partner Sir Richard Branson, right, joins them. (3 -- color in AV edition only; ran in AV and SAC editions) Pilot Brian Binnie holds an American flag atop SpaceShipOne in Mojave after taking the spacecraft on its $10 million-winning flight nearly 70 miles into the sky. (4 -- color in AV edition only; ran in AV and SAC editions) Peter Diamandis, founder of the St. Louis-based X Prize Foundation, celebrates with Paul Allen, left, Burt Rutan, popping the champagne, pilot Brian Binnie and Richard Branson, right, after SpaceShipOne's successful, prize-winning flight. Gene Blevins/Special to the Daily News (5 -- ran in Valley edition only) Using a telescope and proprietary tracking software built by astronomers Ron Dantowitz and Marek Kozubalo, photographer Mark Greenberg follow SpaceShipOne into space Monday when it captured a $10 million prize. Dexter/Southfield Schools/WorldPictureNews Box: (ran in Valley edition only) FLIGHT FACTS |
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