From: J Corbally (icorb@indigo.ie)
Date: Sun Apr 20 2003 - 03:36:38 MDT
Some interesting developments in the race for the X-Prize;
>US pioneer plans to offer spaceflights
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/2956103.stm
>Burt Rutan, the man behind the only aircraft to fly non-stop around the
>world without refueling, has unveiled what he calls the world's first
>private space programme.
>The unveiling of Mr Rutan's space hardware, said to be at a mature stage
>of development, will undoubtedly push the race to become the first private
>astronaut into its final stages.
>Experts are taking the initiative seriously, saying that Mr Rutan's track
>record and new technology put him on course to win the so-called X-prize
>for the first non-government spaceflight.
>For the past two years he has carried out what he describes as a secret
>and aggressive manned sub-orbital space programme in the Mojave Desert in
>California.
>He told BBC News Online: "The event is not about dreams, predictions or
>mock-ups. We will show actual flight hardware: an aircraft for
>high-altitude airborne launch, a flight-ready manned spaceship, a new,
>ground-tested rocket propulsion system and much more."
>"After the unveiling, we will go back into hiding to complete the flight
>tests and conduct the space flights," Mr Rutan says.
>Analysts are expecting an attempt on the X-prize early next year by Mr
>Rutan and possible one or two other X-prize contenders as well.
Wonder if this'll put the skids under the other contenders.
James...
"If you can't take a little bloody nose, maybe you ought to go back home and
crawl under your bed. It's not safe out here. It's wondrous, with treasures
to satiate desires both subtle and gross. But it's not for the timid."
-Q, Star Trek:TNG episode 'Q Who'
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