A Collection of Rockets

Engine Test Fire - SpaceX

Rockets...Need I say more?

After my latest article History and Innovation, I could not decide what I wanted to research and write next. As more time goes by I'm sure something will come to mind.

Until then, this post is dedicated to pure unadulterated rocket porn! Well, thats one way of putting it. What I mean by that is great pics and videos posted by commercial rocket companies over the past couple of years of their rockets being fired. You might just learn something from it too, so enjoy the post!

Commencing awesomeness in 3...2...1...

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History and Innovation

In air banking. Conceptual image of VMS Eve SpaceShip Two in flight - Virgin Galactic

Are ventures like Virgin Galactic nothing more than an expensive joy ride for the rich?

Virgin Galactic has booked over 450 passengers on a trip to space, which costs $200,000 per ticket. The price includes 2 days of flight preparation, and a trip to space and a feeling of weightlessness that lasts about 4 minutes...

What? 4 minutes? That's it? For $200,000 I get 4 minutes in space?

Although it is much cheaper than what it costs to send a NASA Astronaut to space (which hovers somewhere around $50 million), $200,000 is still expensive to say you were in space for 4 minutes. Although it is very subtle, the fact that the price has been dropped so low, and you don't have to be deemed a government approved astronaut to go is a big deal. We must look at companies like Virgin Galactic, XCOR, Space Adventures, and other space tourism companies in the context of history and innovation.

In this post, we will look into the development and history of great things that have changed the way we lived, and why we can be optimistic that space travel will fall along the same progression.

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The Mojave Air and Space Port

 VMS EVE carries VSS Enterprise on her first manned flight, seen soaring over Mojave. Photo by Mark Greenberg

The Future of Space Lies in the Desert...

It is amazing to think that we are only a year or two away from seeing the first flights of regular paying passengers aboard Virgin Galactics Spaceship 2 and XCOR Lynx vehicles. These companies work tirelessly everyday to bring about a revolution that will be hard to miss. Many people may not be aware that these 2 companies live next door to each other at the Mojave Air and Space Port, in Mojave California. Not only are they located there, but so is Masten Aerospace, another New Space group with its own unique approach to getting to space. Prior to these companies being there, this was home to Rotary Rocket, a company with a very unique helicopter/rocket hybrid to get to space. All these amazing companies, in such close proximity to one another, begs a question. Why would these companies all settle at the Mojave Air and Space Port? Hopefully I may be able to answer that question.

This blog post will cover the Mojave Air and Space Port, it's history, and why Mojave became the place that will bring civillian space travel to the world.

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What Will Happen With Private Space In 2011

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- XCOR 5K18 "Lynx" Engine, Photo by Mike Massee - 

 

The Adventure Continues...

There are those going to work today, thinking about the future of space travel. How cool is that? Of course I am not saying that they just started thinking about it, they have been thinking about this since the first man ever stepped foot in space almost 50 years ago now. They are building the next generation of rockets, space planes, and space stations. Fortunately, the environment in which they have built these new space businesses has been one that allows them to operate on much smaller budgets, due to advances in propulsion, computers, robotics, and commercial off the shelf parts that make things much easier to build. NASA has also realized the value of these new commercial businesses, and have dedicated a good amount of extra funds to help them. Let us hope that our government also realizes how important they are, and keeps the funding going (fingers crossed). There is no shortage of amazing things that will happen this year, and I would like to highlight some of the companies and what they plan to do this year.

 

You ready for this? Let's get to it.

 

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Everyday Sci-Fi

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The US Air Force has put together a web miniseries called "Everyday Sci-Fi," and I was featured in one of the episodes. The episode features a lot of cool info on the companies XCOR and Masten Aerospace. Big thanks to the USAF, Doug Jones of XCOR, and Dave Masten of Masten Aerospace for doing the interviews with me, and showing me the great things they were up to. Also, thank you to Alex Emerson for production, and keeping me hydrated during my time out in the hot Mojave sun.

What do you think? Make sure to leave a comment! =)

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