virgin space ship enterprise

Virgin Galactic Unveils Spaceshiptwo

Only 450 people have ever been to space, but if Sir Richard Branson has his way, that number will climb - and quickly.

On Monday at dusk in the Mojave Desert, Branson unveiled his latest baby, Spaceship2, pictured at right, the second in his fleet of intergalactic shuttles. SS2 was designed to take thousands of private astronauts into space after test programming and all required U.S. government licensing and regulatory approvals have been completed, which, could could take quite some time.

"This is truly a momentous day," said Branson. "The team has created not only a world first but also a work of art."

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