An unforgettable moment in life – This was what British billionaire Richard Branson had to say when he returned to earth from space. Branson boarded Virgin Galactic spacecraft VSS Unity which lifted off from New Mexico on Sunday night. At an altitude of about 90 kilometers above Earth, he saw the sky turning black and earth’s horizon curving away into the distance.
According to Branson, it was a journey to the edge of space.
The journey lasted about 1 hour from take off. Before returning to earth, Branson and his teammates saw the beautiful shape of the planet. For some time, they experienced weightlessness, too.
The crew comprised six people including Branson, the owner of Virgin Galactic. Indian woman Sirisha Bandla was also part of the mission. It was the vehicle’s first fully crewed test flight to space. Branson described the mission as a precursor to a new era of space tourism.
Earlier, a video posted by Virgin Galactic showed Branson arriving at the launch site on a bicycle and hugging his colleagues. The launch was witnessed by a large number of space industry executives, prospective customers and well-wishers. Elon Musk, billionaire and pioneer in the space industry, was also present.
The company plans to conduct two more test flights before launching commercial operations in 2022.
After the rare feat, Branson has become the first billionaire entrepreneur to fly into space. His achievement comes nine days before the scheduled flight of billionaire and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, on July 20.
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