The Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo rocket plane successfully completed a test run on Friday, with observers watching from the Mojave desert below.
The SpaceShipTwo plane emitted oxidizer through its engine, leading many observers to theorize that the plane could be undergoing its first powered flight in the near future. The plane's rocket has not yet been initiated, despite over three years of testing, including ground-based test firings.
SpaceShipTwo began its test run after being lifted by the WhiteKnightTwo carrier plane, which took off from the Mojave Air and Space Port. The carrier flew the plane 50,000 feet in the air before releasing it for a flight that lasted just under 11 minutes. According to Virgin Galactic, the flight was an important step toward the plane's full-scale launch.
"Importantly, and for the first time in the air, oxidizer was flowed through the propulsion system and out through the nozzle at the rear of the vehicle — thus successfully accomplishing the 'Cold-Flow' procedure," Virgin Galactic stated in a news release. "As well as providing further qualifying evidence that the rocket system is flight-ready, the test also provided a stunning spectacle due to the oxidizer contrail, and for the first time gave a taste of what SpaceShipTwo will look like as it powers to space."
Many are pointing to April 22 as the date for the first powered flight of SpaceShipTwo. The date is the 69th birthday of adventurer Steve Fossett, who completed a nonstop solo flight around the world in 2005, becoming the first person to do so. However, Virgin Galactic has yet to announce when the flight will take place.
"We have to do a full review of the data before we finalize our next flight milestone, but we're getting close now," CEO and president George T. Whitesides said.
The SpaceShipTwo aircraft may begin accepting passengers as soon as 2014. Those aboard the plane will be taken above the atmosphere, experiencing weightlessness and seeing the Earth from an astronaut's perspective. The cost is $200,000 per ticket.
