Virgin Mothership Eve

The WhiteKnightTwo aircraft, Virgin Galactic's second launch vehicle in its fleet of suborbital aircraft, was unveiled Monday at the Mojave Air and Spaceport in Mojave, Calif.

The Virgin Mothership Eve (VMS Eve) was named after Richard Branson's own mother, Eve Branson. The high-altitude aircraft carrier was made to fly the SpaceShipTwo passenger vehicle into Earth's upper atmosphere.

"We are naming it Eve after my mother, Eve Branson, but also because it represents a first and a new beginning, the chance for our ever-growing group of future astronauts and other scientists and payload specialists to see our world in a completely new light," Branson said in a statement.