VSS Imagine
Space science and flights have always astonished us with their innovations, ideas and designs. A mirror body space flight designed to take people and scientific experiments to and from suborbital space. Carrying two pilots and six passengers and designed to lift off from beneath the wings of a carrier aircraft, which drops them at an altitude of about 50,000 feet. At that point, each spacecraft’s onboard rocket motor lights up, blasting it up to suborbital space, reminding us of spaceships seen in the movies. Except this is happening, VSS Imagine by Virgin Galactic has amazed us with their spaceship.
On March 30, 2021 Virgin Galactic unveiled the Company’s first Spaceship III, VSS Imagine. The breakthrough livery design, finished entirely with a mirror-like material reflects the surrounding environment leading to constant change in colour and appearance as it travels from earth to sky to space. This dynamic material does not only appeal to the human eye but also performs a crucial function of providing thermal protection.
The SpaceShip III class of vehicles are built to enable improved performance in terms of maintenance access and flight rate. This 3rd Gen spaceship will lay the foundation for the design and manufacture of future spaceships by Virgin Galactic.
As VSS Imagine begins ground testing, manufacturing will progress on VSS Inspire, the second SpaceShip III vehicle within the Virgin Galactic fleet. The introduction of the Spaceship III class of vehicles is an important milestone in Virgin Galactic’s multi-year effort that targets flying 400 flights per year, per spaceport.
Virgin Galactic passengers won’t circle Earth, like astronauts aboard the International Space Station do. But, they will get to experience a few minutes of weightlessness and see the curve and silhouette of the Earth against the blackness of space and rays of the Sun.
Unity and Imagine are at Spaceport America, in New Mexico, Virgin Galactic’s commercial hub. Unity is in the final stages of its test campaign and is expected to launch on another suborbital test mission — its third spaceflight overall but first from Spaceport America — this May.
As part of the world’s engineering facility, Team Arcis is extremely excited for this and wish the best to the team of engineers behind the making of this beautiful marvel of science.
