Wanna know what it’s like to sit on the back of a rocket ship and watch as it breaks the sound barrier? Because for their recent test of SpaceShipTwo’s reentry systems, Virgin Galactic stuck a camera onto the tail of the rocket and recorded its ascent into orbit. This is one of those videos you need to watch in 1080p — trust us, it’s worth the load time.
This is both the rocket’s second powered flight and it’s second successful test, which is a pretty good track record for a craft that’s expected to one day take civilians into orbit. On Richard Branson’s blog, he states that Virgin Galactic is on track for a 2014 commercial release after being their license was accepted for review by the Federal Aviation Administration. They’re now adding finishing touches on the details of their program, including finalizing cabin interiors, flights suits, and training programs for their astronauts.
It’s unlikely that any of us will ever be able to scrounge up the money necessary for the flight, but at least we can imagine what it might be like with these awesome videos.
(Virgin Galactic via Geek.com)
- Check out the footage from their last successful rocket test
- And here’s images of their LauncherOne satellite vehicle
- But does Virgin Galactic have an awesome Instagram account?
