Posted on 10/01/2004 12:17:07 AM PDT by bunkerhill7
SpaceShipOne to proceed with 2nd flight for X Prize
JOHN ANTCZAK, Associated Press Writer Thursday, September 30, 2004
(09-30) 19:40 PDT LOS ANGELES (AP) --
The creators of SpaceShipOne will go ahead with plans for another launch next week to win the $10 million Ansari X Prize after analyzing a roll that occurred as it neared space.
X Prize organizers announced without elaboration Thursday night that SpaceShipOne designer Burt Rutan had given notice that he would proceed with Monday morning's scheduled flight.
The Ansari X Prize, intended to spur development of space tourism, is a formal competition for privately developed spacecraft capable of carrying three people -- or a pilot and equivalent weight -- 62 miles high.
The competition requires two successful flights by the same craft within a 14-day span to claim the prize.
Under the rules, the 14-day clock began running when SpaceShipOne touched down Wednesday morning after reaching an altitude of about 64 miles in its first competition flight. Time runs out at 8:34 a.m. Oct. 13.
The question of whether to proceed with the second flight arose after SpaceShipOne unexpectedly began rolling as it soared toward space.
The flight director recommended that pilot Michael Melvill shut down the rocket motor, but Melvill chose to let it burn a few seconds longer to ensure he had reached the target altitude, then shut it down.
Despite the roll, Melvill, 63, kept the craft on course and brought the roll to a halt in space, using the craft's reaction control system.
There is absolutely no similarity between these two aircraft, one is white and the other is red..
I'm tied to the store right now, which is a pain, as I had hoped to make to Mojave for one of the two flights for the X-prize. It's such a great story, I almost wish that they'd have waited until after the elections. Now it's being lost in the background...
Americans, showing the world how to do it. Gotta love that. Can't wait until they start working on Virgin's spacecrafts. Heh, who would have thought a year ago there would be a contract for a fleet of spacecraft from one small business to a corporation?
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