SpaceShipOne Wins Ansari X Prize

As expected, the Scaled Composites crew won the $10 million SpaceShipOne prize this morning, reaching an official height of 368,000 ft (112.6 km). Check out the coverage over at CNN, SpaceDaily, and SpaceRef. According to the press, the flight went very smooth with “a little roll,” per the pilot Brian Binnie.

This definitely marks a turning point in space history. We have shown to the world that space travel (albeit into very-low orbit) is both affordable and commercially accessible. The fact that Scaled Composites was able to pull off this amazing feat with only $20 to $30 million funding (primarily by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen) only underscores how poorly government-run operations stand-up to scrutiny. Government funding may be necessary to jump-start an industry with high start-up costs, but once certain lessons have been learned, private enterprise can step up to the plate and achieve remarkable results. Granted, we will not see the fruits of our entrepreneurial and exploratory spirits for a number of years, as fleets of ships with greater and greater capabilities shoot off to the stars. The future is looking brighter with this wonderful success.

[update] I think I need to recruit a copy editor or something because I make too many spelling errors. Maybe I should print out these posts first and proof them on paper, which I find far easier than on screen. Anyway, I fixed that awful one/won glaring mistake in the first sentence. (No coffee that morning.)