Virgin Galactic carried out the first tourist flight into space (13 photos + 1 video)

August 10 Virgin Galactic billionaire Richard Branson carried out the first tourist flight to the border with space. To the crew ship included a mother and daughter from Antigua and Barbuda, who won a ticket to charity lottery, as well as an 80-year-old British Olympian.





Historic flight took place from the spaceport in New Mexico 10 August at 10.30 am local time. Passengers boarded spaceplane VSS Unity, which was under the wing of a twin-fuselage aircraft carrier VMS Eve.



The flight became historic for several reasons. 46 year old Keisha Shahaff and her 18-year-old daughter Anastasia Myers became the first residents Antigua and Barbuda, who have been in space.

Former canoeist John Goodwin is the first Olympian to become astronaut, and only the second person in history with Parkinson's disease, been in space.

This mission was the first completely tourist and the second commercial.





Shahaff and her daughter won their seats in the lottery, during which raised $1.7 million for a non-profit organization Space for Humanity, whose activities are aimed at expanding access to space.



The carrier aircraft climbed to a height of more than 12,000 meters. IN At that moment, the spaceplane detached itself, started the rocket engine and continued to rise to a height of more than 80 km above the Earth's surface.

When the crew reached the border with space, one of the instructors gave a thumbs up, after which everyone unfastened their belts security and began to soar in weightlessness.















"This is a childhood dream come true," Shahaff told reporters. after landing. - My daughter and I went to space and returned back. And if anyone is wondering, the earth is round."

Keisha Shahaff is a trainer and nutritionist who helps women find balance through proper nutrition and wellness practices.

Myers is one of Keisha's two daughters. The girl is studying second year at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland, studying philosophy and physics to become an astrobiologist.



But Goodwin from the city of Newcastle in the north of England paid for its place 250 000 dollars even 18 years ago. The British participated in canoeing competition at the 1972 Munich Olympics. He loves extreme pastime: won races for the polar around and climbed Mount Kilimanjaro. In 2014, The men were diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.

According to Virgin Galactic, there are already 800 customers waiting their turn to fly into space. Ticket price increased to 450,000 dollars.