SpaceShipOne

In the past, space travel has only been possible with the backing of well-funded, huge government space programs.

But the creators of SpaceShipOne, the first non-government manned spacecraft, set out to change that. In 2004, the ship won the $10 million Ansari X Prize by rocketing 100 km (62 miles) into space. The competition challenged independent designers to safely put three people into space twice in two weeks with a reusable spacecraft.

SpaceShipOne is launched from beneath a turbofan-powered White Knight aircraft at 50,000 feet, then is powered by a hybrid rocket motor at 2,000 mph. straight up into space, then glides back to earth.

Virgin formed Virgin Galactic, which will become the world’s first commercial space tourism operator. It is expected that around £60 million ($100 million) will be invested in developing the new generation of spaceships and ground infrastructure required to operate a sub orbital space tourism experience. In the first five years, Virgin expected to create around 3,000 astronauts and the price per seat on each flight, which will include at least three days of pre-flight training, are expected to start at around £115,000 ($190,000). Virgin will reinvest the proceeds in developing a new generation of vehicles for further space ventures. To date the cheapest space tourism experiences in government built and taxpayer funded spaceships cost over $15,000,000 per seat.

The spaceship’s creators envision a world where space travel is a thriving commercial business catering to anyone who has the desire to venture to the stars.