“It is a great moment because although the event may be virtual, its importance is beginning to open space for everyone, it is very real,” Virgin founder Sir Richard Branson said during today’s reveal. “It is, which has been specifically designed to allow thousands of people to achieve their dreams of space flight safely.”
“Someone once told me that the Virgin Galactic spacecraft was the first to be built from the inside out,” he continued. “There is a certain degree of poetic license in that statement, but it contains a fundamental truth. We started with what we believed would be an optimal customer experience. And then we built the spacecraft around it. “
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Virgin Galactic partnered with UK design firm Seymourpowell to develop the vehicle’s interior to develop “an elegant but progressive and experience-focused concept,” according to a press release on Tuesday. The individual reclining seats will be made of aluminum and carbon fiber to resist the sub-3G generated by the vehicle’s engines. The screens mounted on the seat backs will not show the latest Vin Diesel pump, but will instead show live flight data as well as 16 HD cameras mounted outside the vehicle. Those videos and photos will also be available to those on board after the flight to share on social media. Astronauts who want to see the planet for themselves will be able to see from any of the 12 cabin windows. Since the purpose of these trips is to allow people to experience weightlessness, the cabin is covered in smooth surfaces and handles, such as the “halo” trim around each window. And, like Virgin Atlantic flights, Unity will be equipped with ambient lighting that transits between each phase of the journey.
Virgin Galactic has come a long way since a fatal crash during flight testing forced the company to temporarily suspend the project (and the sale of tickets aboard the spacecraft) in 2014. After rebuilding the vehicle, Virgin Galactic managed to hit space in 2018 Ticket sales resumed in February this year when the company launched its One Small Step program, in which potential wealthy space tourists can deposit a $ 1,000 deposit to jump to the front of the line of reservations. Originally, tickets were expected to cost around $ 250,000, although then-CEO George Whitesides warned that the price could rise dramatically as development of the flight system progresses.
In June this year, SpaceShipTwo successfully completed its second glide test, reaching Mach .85 and clearing the way for powered flight testing in the near future. Last week, Virgin Galactic announced that it had hired former Disney executive Michael Colglazier as its new CEO, replacing Whitesides, who now works as the company’s Space Director.
