LIVE THREAD: Spaceship One Launch

6/20/04

[KevinDavis]

I thought this will be the official live thread of the historic launch of Spaceship One. Since this will happen while I'm at work, I thought I give a live thread an eary start..

[ChadGore]

Now T - 1 HOUR and 11 MINUTES

[ChadGore]

Flight plan

Scaled Composite officials expect a smooth flight, but anyone who follows the space industry knows that every flight has inherent risks.

In fact SpaceShipOne had a landing mishap during a test flight in September. There were no injuries and the craft was not significantly damaged when it slid off the runway.

Weather permitting, the craft will be carried aloft aboard the White Knight, a somewhat conventional airplane built specially for this purpose. An hour after taking off from the Mojave Airport, at about 50,000 feet, the White Knight will release SpaceShipOne, whose pilot will fire a rocket, powered by rubber and laughing gas, for about 80 seconds.

SpaceShipOne should soar to 62 miles (100 kilometers), crossing the threshold of space on a suborbital trajectory. The pilot, who has not yet been named, would officially become an astronaut.

According to plan, the craft will spend about three minutes in weightlessness, then glide back to Earth. It will land about 1 hour and 25 minutes after the initial takeoff in the same location.

The launch is planned for early morning because winds tend to pick up later in the day. Weather could scrub the launch, possibly pushing it back a day or more.

[OXENinFLA]

SPACE PING!>..................

[SSTOBuilder]

Ok so we have a collection of rich bored guys that only want to X-Prize, and seem to have no plans beyond getting the prize. All the best to them, but this program is nothing more than a tax write off. It carries no cargo, and what two people? I have been trying to get some hard data on this craft and have had NO luck. I am one of the apparently many people that have a PRACTICAL SSTO ship design, that can work, but no one is interested. Anyone care to see some research and answer that question. Just another observation, it seems that all of the X-prize contestants have no plans past the prize. What does that say???

[OXENinFLA]

Welcome to FreeRepublic.....


Have you ever built a rocket able to break the earth's gravity?

[SSTOBuilder]

No. But the research is already there. I don't even have the money to buy the sheetmetal right now. I wonder if NASA would loan me an engine or two?

[ChadGore]

Re: Ok so we have a collection of rich bored guys

Please . . a little respect for Mr Rutan and his team. I believe they've earned it.

I look at this as the XEROX PARC of the new millenium. The people that do this hard work now, will go on to have a positive impact in the field.

[SSTOBuilder]

If you have, maybe we need to chat about it?

[ChadGore]

Re: earth's gravity?

Gravity sucks. :)

[hattend]

I am one of the apparently many people that have a PRACTICAL SSTO ship design, that can work, but no one is interested.

Find another "collection of bored rich guys" and follow your dream. Hit the pavement and knock on doors. Rutan's success today and over the next couple of weeks may open some doors for you.

Welcome to FR.

[SSTOBuilder]

AS I said, "...seem to have no plans beyond getting the prize...seems that all of the X-prize contestants have no plans past the prize. What does that say???" What will this ship prove? Nothing more than the same thing (in a different craft) that Separd-Grissom proved back in 61!!

[KevinDavis]

This should be Breaking News... Less than a hour to go!

[OXENinFLA]

I'm just saying give credit where credit is due.

These guy's have the capital to out their ideas/theories to the test and in about 45mins we're all going to be able to watch.

[OXENinFLA]

Did you miss the press conf. where they said in 10-15 yrs. they thought commercial space flights would be possible?

[Lokibob]

You crawl before you walk, you walk before you run.

"One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind"

Glad you have a workable design to go to space, but do you expect to go to the moon first launch? If so, don't bother to invite me.

If they can get a couple of hundred lbs to 100 KM, that, to me shows that they could launch a communications satellite at apogee, cutting costs considerably. BUT, first they have to get that high.

Sorry, I get irritated at the naysayers that take every human endeavor and try to take it down.

[Centurion2000]

bump for later

[SSTOBuilder]

Oh yea, no doubt! It is just that no one seems to be interested in creating the next market. I mean we can go two ways right?

[hattend]

Can we get this put in Breaking News?

[Tijeras_Slim]

Ok so we have a collection of rich bored guys

No bucks, no Buck Rogers. Anyway, what would you want them to do? Go into politics like a bunch of other bored rich guys?

[SSTOBuilder]

Nice Tag! One would think that folks like these would have plans past this level. I cant find any metioned. The are going to do this great today! I only hope that this stuff stays in the media constantly now.