SpaceShuttleTwo Makes it Possible for Private Citizens to go into Space

A little over a year ago, on December 7^th, 2009 The Spaceship Company, founded by both Burt Rutan and Richard Branson, displayed a new and improved form of SpaceShipOne called SpaceShipTwo (SS2).  This is a commercial suborbital space vehicle that takes off like an aircraft then after detachment the spaceplane, which contains the space crew passengers and pilots, detaches from the mother ship takes off like a rocket into space.  The Spacecraft first reaches a velocity of about 2600mph at an altitude of about 50,000ft before the spaceplane detaches from the mother ship. It will reach a maximum orbital height, also known as the apogee, of about 110km, and it will remain in space for about 6 to 8 minutes before heading back to Earth. The total duration of each trip is estimated to be about 2.5 hours. Now the interesting thing about this spaceplane is that it is going to be a private passenger spaceplane. In other words, people who are not professional astronauts can go into space via SS2 as long as each person pays the $200,000 (USD) fee. 

Both Virgin Galactic and The SpaceShip Company have made efforts for making private organizations to get private citizens into space. I find it really intriguing that a lot of people are taking great interest in this. Space tourism will be made possible for those who can afford it. The spaceport has a 2-mile long runway in New Mexico that was dedicated and named after its current governor there Bill Richardson. In his speech, at the opening of the spaceport, the New Mexican governor said that New Mexico was " no only helping to launch the commercial spaceflight industry but [that they] are launching new jobs and opportunities for the people of southern New Mexico". Essentially, this project is not only allowing private citizens to tour into space, but it is also helping the New Mexican governor fortify his identity and reputation as a great governor by helping create more jobs. And now that the 2-mile long runway has his name on it, it further helps solidify this reputation of a great governor.

How do spaceplanes relate to new digital media? Well, simulations of this vehicle, such as the one in the video above, have made it possibly to simulate the vehicle's trajectory way before it goes into space. The simulation is really amazing because it captures the dynamics of the space vehicle as it makes its trip to space and back very well. This is not necessarily done for mathematical or engineering purposes but rather, it is a way for Virgin Galactic and for The SpaceShip Company to advertise their new product. Many people now will not be able to afford the space tour. It is essentially a tour that only the rich and privileged will be able to afford. This is something that reminds me a little about Facebook. The reason is because when Facebook was formed, it was strictly for college students only: which in this case, were the "privileged" ones. You actually needed a college email in order to be able to create a profile. For this reason, I believe that Facebook became more appealing to people. Now suppose that both these companies grow to such an extent where  more people of the lower classes can afford the tour. Much like Mark Zuckerberg, I believe that both Rutan and Branson will become two very powerful people.