It’s a momentous occasion for British billionaire visionary Richard Branson.  One of his nuttier ventures, commercial space flight, is getting that much closer to completion.  Yesterday, the Virgin Galactic commercial spacecraft SpaceShipTwo underwent a successful first solo glide from 45,000 feet back down to the surface of the Earth.  It’s the latest in a long series of successful test flights for Branson and Virgin.

The ship, built by Scaled Composites, took off from the Mojave Air and Space Port in California’s Mojave Desert. Once attaining 45,000 feet in altitude, SpaceShipTwo undocked from its carrier, WhiteKnightTwo, and started the 11-minute glide/flight back down.  Given Branson’s stated goal of round-trip space tourism being slightly delayed from his original goal date, he’s still ages ahead of competitors like Boeing’s commercial spacecraft.

Tags: Richard Branson, Virgin, Virgin Galactic, Virgin Galactic spaceship makes first solo glide, commercial space flight, SpaceShipTwo, WhiteKnightTwo, Mojave Air and Space Port, Mojave Desert, California, Scaled Composites

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