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Virgin Galactic

Billionaire Richard Branson has spent 17 years trying to commercialize a bigger, upgraded version of SpaceShipOne. On July 11, 2021, his company Virgin Galactic took a major step toward that goal when the company’s V.S.S. Unity space plane flew two pilots and four crew members, including Branson, more than 50 miles above Earth’s surface.

Virgin Galactic's Richard Branson and other passengers wait for the V.S.S. Unity, Virgin Galactic’s suborbital rocket-powered space plane, to be released from the mothership.

On July 11, Virgin Galactic’s space plane V.S.S. Unity lit its rocket motor and flew to more than 53 miles above Earth’s surface, sending the company’s founder Richard Branson to the edge of space.

Virgin Galactic reaches space by first sending the SpaceShipTwo vehicle into the air attached to a carrier plane, called White Knight Two. The spacecraft then detaches and fires its rocket engine to complete the climb.

Beth Moses (center) floats in microgravity on board a Virgin Galactic flight on February 22.