News Sir Richard Branson gains licence for commercial spaceflights.

[Sbb1413]

Just found the post to warn that there are controversies related to the Richard Branson's so-called "spaceflight", since his flight did not cross above the Kármán line (100 km). However, his flight may be called "near-spaceflight".

 

[MarkWatney2015]

However, his flight may be called "near-spaceflight".

Internally at the US Air Force and NASA, their definition of the Karman line is 80 km. Because of this, every SpaceShipTwo mission (including Branson's) qualify as suborbital spaceflights, not near-spaceflight.

Not only SS2 flights will be considered as spaceflights with that definition, but also to the other eleven X-15 flights that didn't reach 100 km, and the aborted Soyuz MS-10 flight (which only reached 93 km before falling back to Earth)

A true suborbital spaceflight or not, it is still one hell of a ride imho. Funnily enough in Orbiter itself, when ascending, it follows the international definition, but on reentry, it follows the US definition

 

[GLS]

This thing is flying again

https://twitter.com/x/status/1669441088166457344

https://twitter.com/x/status/1673290347647242240

 

[GLS]

Starts at 1500 UTC

 

[GLS]

Less than 10 minutes to release.

 

[GLS]

Maybe 3 minutes to release.... hard to tell as the clock went bananas

 

[GLS]

Release and ignition!

 

[GLS]

Engine burnout!

 

[GLS]

Apogee in space*.


*) not universally accepted

 

[Thunder Chicken]

Dude on lower left looks like he's going to be sick.

 

[GLS]

Feather now closed, gliding to the runway.

 

[GLS]

Dude on lower left looks like he's going to be sick.

I think he was controlling his breathing. Some, or all of them, are pilots in the Italian Air Force.

 

[Thunder Chicken]

Why do they think watching talking heads is more interesting then watching the actual thing fly? Why?

 

[GLS]

Touchdown!

 

[GLS]

Wheels stop!