Deadly blast rocks Virgin Galactic rocket test
Engadget Reports – Deadly blast rocks Virgin Galactic rocket test:
“This week is quickly becoming a tough one for the aerospace industry, as just a day after NASA reported tampering on an ISS bound computer, an explosion at the Mojave Air and Space Port has claimed two lives and seriously injured four others. The blast reportedly occurred during a “test of a new rocket motor for SpaceShipTwo — a spaceship being built for Virgin Galactic, Richard Branson’s space tourism company.” According to a spokeswoman for the spaceport, the blast was “on a remote pad” at an airport home to Scaled Composite (which is the builder of the first private manned rocket to reach space), but the firm’s founder Burt Rutan wasn’t in attendance when the “cold fire test” went awry.” – Engadget
This is such a shame. I am a huge supporter of exploring space, and if I ever make the bigs, I will be vying for a seat on Virgin Galactic. However, this reminder as to how dangerous the science of building space ships may cause a downturn in the enthusiasm for private space ventures. I surely hope not. This is the future of space exploration, and habitation. Governments cannot be the sole provider of space technology. Given large budgets, Government agencies spend large amounts of money, and the technology never becomes affordable. The new space race is all about making the domination of government agencies in the space industry a thing of the past. There are loads of companies making some very cool steps in the right direction. I would certainly love to work on something like this one day…
