Virgin Galactic is due to make its 1st commercial flight into space this Thursday; know the mission

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Galactic Mission 01 will be used to do research on microgravity environments. Flight price was not revealed, but in 2021, the company started selling tickets for US$ 450,000 (R$ 2 million) each. Virgin Galactic spacecraft, in the middle, docked with VMS Eve during Unity 24, a test mission carried out in April 2023 Disclosure / Virgin Galactic The space tourism company Virgin Galactic intends to do this Thursday (29), around 12h (Brasília time), its first commercial flight into space. Members of the Italian Air Force and the Italian National Research Council will conduct an experiment on microgravity. The Galactic 01 mission is the beginning of a new stage at Virgin Galactic, which made a suborbital flight in 2021 with billionaire Richard Branson, owner of the brand. The company already has another trip scheduled for August, and after that, it plans to take tourists into space every month. Check below the main information about the mission. What will the first mission be like? Virgin Galactic’s first commercial mission will have scientific purposes. Named Galactic 01, the trip will carry three members of the Italian Air Force and the Italian National Research Council, who will conduct research on microgravity during the flight. The company has not yet detailed the second commercial mission, scheduled for August and called Galactic 02. Virgin Galactic spacecraft during Unity 24, a test mission carried out in April 2023 Disclosure / Virgin Galactic Who will be on the 1st flight? The mission will have four passengers and two pilots. See who they are: Walter Villadei, colonel of the Italian Air Force: he will wear a state-of-the-art suit capable of capturing biometric data and biological responses; Angelo Landolfi, Lieutenant Colonel and Italian Air Force physician: will conduct tests to measure cognitive performance and investigate how certain liquids and solids mix in a microgravity environment; Pantaleone Carlucci, an engineer at the National Research Council of Italy: will conduct tests wearing sensors that examine metrics like heart rate and brain function; Colin Bennett, Virgin Galactic astronaut instructor: trained passenger staff and will evaluate flight experience during the mission; Miske Masuccio, Commander: Retired US Air Force Lieutenant Colonel, has been flying since 1982 and has over 10,000 hours of experience; Nicola Pecile, pilot of the unit: retired lieutenant colonel of the Italian Air Force, has been flying since 1991 and has over 7,000 hours of flight experience. Two other people will be on the VMS Eve, the “aircraft carrier” that flies to a certain altitude and then detaches from the ship where the passengers are. On VMS Eve will be Kelly Latime, who will be the commander, and Jameel Janjua, the pilot. Initial plugin text How much does it cost? Virgin Galactic did not reveal how much it charged to make the two flights, but in November 2021, the company started selling tickets for US$ 450,000 (about R$ 2 million, at the quotation of June 15, 2023). Customers were required to make an initial $150,000 deposit and complete payment prior to their flight. Before that, from 2005 to 2013, the company sold 600 “cheap” tickets – between US$ 200,000 and US$ 250,000 (between R$ 960,000 and R$ 1.2 million). VIDEO: See the best moments of Richard Branson’s flight to space What will the flights be like? The two flights will be suborbital, that is, they will not go beyond the Earth’s atmosphere. On the journey made by Branson, the aircraft reached an altitude of 89 kilometers, just above the 80 kilometers that the United States uses to define the “beginning” of space. Blue Origin flights, the company of billionaire Jeff Bezos, are also suborbital, but exceed 100 kilometers above sea level, on the so-called Kárman Line. This is the definition of “early” space for organizations such as the International Aeronautical Federation. In suborbital flight, the spacecraft climbs to a maximum point and then returns to the ground. For a few moments, passengers have the feeling of zero gravity. This type of flight usually lasts a few minutes – the mission with Branson, for example, took about 20 minutes. Orbital flight, like those carried out by SpaceX, the spacecraft reaches Earth’s orbit and, until returning to the ground, remains for a while in a circular path around the planet. Understand the difference between suborbital and orbital flight Suborbital flight: understand what it is and see how Richard Branson’s trip to space was How is the Virgin Galactic spacecraft? Instead of a rocket, the company makes its missions with a plane: it is the SpaceShip Two model, which was called VSS Unity in the mission with Branson. It is carried to some extent by the “aircraft carrier” VMS Eve. Afterwards, the plane’s engines are started, and it disengages to complete the flight on its own. On Branson’s flight, the plane broke away at an altitude of 15 kilometers and then completed its journey to the extreme edge of the atmosphere. The differences between SpaceX, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic Arte/g1 space tourism ships The Virgin Galactic Arte/g1 spacecraft READ ALSO: VIDEO: remember the explosion of the Starship, SpaceX spacecraft Elon Musk’s plan to take people around the moon The launch of the world’s highest capacity internet satellite Inside the Virgin Galactic space plane. Disclosure / Virgin Galactic

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