VSS Enterprise takeoff
1 of 6 from Virgin spacecraft makes maiden voyage (photos)
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Inching ever closer to taking customers on commercial spaceflights, Virgin Galactic's VSS Enterprise took off on its first "captive carry" test flight at 7:05 a.m. Monday from the Mojave Air and Spaceport in Mojave, Calif.
The spacecraft, which was unveiled on December 7, 2009, took the journey while remaining attached to its mothership, a carrier aircraft called VMS Eve.
When commercial flights begin, the vehicle will cruise to an altitude of 50,000 feet, where the VSS Enterprise, powered by a hybrid rocket motor, will detach from the mothership and launch passengers into suborbital space.
March 22, 2010 3:39 PM PDT
Photo by: Mark Greenberg
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