Monday, May 1, 2023

Photo of the Day: VSS Unity Is on the Verge of Returning Back to the Edge of Space After a Successful Glide Test...

VSS Unity conducts a glide test above the New Mexico desert...on April 26, 2023.
Virgin Galactic

Five days ago, Virgin Galactic successfully completed a glide test for VSS Unity above the New Mexico desert. This is SpaceShipTwo's first flight since she brought Sir Richard Branson and three co-passengers to the edge of space back in 2021.

Here are the stats from the April 26 test:

Take-off Time: 6:53 AM, MDT (5:53 AM, PDT)

Release Altitude: 47,000 ft (8.9 miles, or 14.3 kilometers)

Release Time: 7:47 AM, MDT (6:47 AM, PDT)

Landing Time: 7:56 AM, MDT (6:56 AM, PDT)

Assuming that the flight data analysis for this glide test is satisfactory, VSS Unity's next mission will be a rocket-powered suborbital flight to assess the customer experience and ground-based testing for SpaceShipTwo and her mothership, VMS Eve, prior to the launch of commercial spaceflight service from Spaceport America in just a few months. Stay tuned!

Posted by Richard Par at 6:09 PM
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