Virgin Galactic

Abstract

Abstract

Virgin Galactic is opening the space frontier to new types of consumers, including private individuals and venture-backed start-ups, by offering frequent and affordable flights on both orbital and suborbital trajectories. SpaceShipTwo, Virgin Galactic's reusable suborbital spacecraft, is in the final phases of a rigorous, multiyear test flight program, having already exceeded the speed of sound in rocket-powered flight. Already, more than 650 individuals have purchased flights on SpaceShipTwo, representing a sustainable revenue stream and putting Virgin Galactic on pace to double the number of astronauts who have flown in space to date within the vehicle's first years of operations. Virgin Galactic is also developing LauncherOne, an orbital launch vehicle for smaller satellites, which is enabling satellite operators and manufacturers to get their assets into space more quickly and affordably. With both the SpaceShipTwo suborbital program and the LauncherOne orbital program, Virgin Galactic is democratizing access to space, allowing a much great pool of individuals and companies to become active participants in the global space exploration community.