Brian Binnie talks to Aero News Network about commercial space (link via Hyperbola):-

USA Today has a summary of the state of play of the space tourism industry by Bill McGee:

• Space Travel is Ready for Booking -- USA Today

The MIT Technology Review blog Delta-V covers an interview with Burt Rutan:

• Burt Rutan Explains Why Space Tourism Matters

This is just plain dumb:-

"...propellants are responsible for about a third of the total cost of mature forms of travel, such as commercial airflight or automobile transportation, [Rutan] estimates that a sub-orbital ticket could one day cost as little as $475 per passenger, while a ticket to orbit could cost $12,000...While such orbital travel would be dramatically cheaper than the tens of millions charged today for private trips to the International Space Station, this would still dash romantic dreams of mass colonization of space by rocket."

Bullshit. At those prices, at least a billion people would have the income levels to be able to afford to go, and even at conservative estimates, tens of millions would actively want to go. I'd call that mass colonisation...

Fan animations created by Mark Hennessey-Barrett.

White Knight/SpaceShipOne:

WhiteKnightTwo/SpaceShipTwo:

The Daily Record has a profile on Brian Binnie, test pilot for Scaled Composites and of Scottish ancestry:-

• Scotland's first astronaut on his trailblazing journey into space -- Daily Record

Binnie spent his childhood years near Aberdeen. He was awarded an honorary doctorate of the University of Aberdeen in 2006, in recognition of his suborbital spaceflight in SpaceShipOne.

Author: Dan Linehan
Foreword by: Sir Arthur C. Clarke

RRP: £12.99, Hardback, 160 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0-7603-3188-0
Publisher: MBI Publishing Company
Pub Date: Out Now!

Truly the ‘final frontier’: first and exclusive comprehensive look at commercial spaceflight.

In April of 2003, a company called Scaled Composites lifted the veil of secrecy from a longtime research programme and introduced SpaceShipOne to the world, igniting the launch of space travel. “While five hundred people have been to space, only three have actually flown themselves there”, says Brian Binnie, SpaceShipOne test pilot and astronaut. SpaceShipOne An Illustrated History, provides a fascinating insight in to the world of commercial space travel and the individuals who made air and space history.

The story of SpaceShipOne combines the adventurous spirit of Charles Lindbergh, the entrepreneurial drive of Howard Hughes, and the urgency of the space race at the height of the Cold War. Author Dan Linehan, who was there at the launch, lets readers in on the drama and details behind the making of spaceships that will take twenty-first-century tourists to the final frontier.

The book chronicles the development of the world’s first commercial manned space programme–a programme that includes an airborne launcher (the White Knight), a space ship (SpaceShipOne), rocket propulsion, avionics, simulator, and full ground support. With ample illustrations, 230 photographs and behind-the-scenes information, SpaceShipOne provides the full picture of this classified project. From the conception and design, to the deals that brought together Scaled Composites’ Burt Rutan and Virgin Airlines’ Sir Richard Branson and the plans to build a fleet of commercial suborbital spaceships.

About the Author

In 2004, Dan Linehan attended the launch of SpaceShipOne when it captured the X Prize. He has written numerous articles about aviation and space for periodicals like Pacific Flyer and In Flight USA. Linehan was the editor and principle feature writer for the California International Airshow’s event program in 2003–2005. He has a background in physics and engineering and lives in California.

YouTube posting by New Voyage News.

XPrize Flight #2
SpaceShipOne flight 17P
max speed: Mach 3.09
altitude: 112.0 km
duration: 23 min 56 s
pilot: Brian Binnie

Courtesy of X PRIZE Foundation
Discovery Channel & Vulcan Productions, Inc

XPrize Flight #1
SpaceShipOne flight 16P
max speed: Mach 2.92
altitude: 102.9 km
duration: 24 min 11 s
pilot: Mike Melvill

Courtesy of X PRIZE Foundation
Discovery Channel & Vulcan Productions, Inc.