Branson: Virgin space project keeps being delayed

[Buster's Uncle]

Branson: Virgin space project keeps being delayed
Associated Press – 1 hr 17 mins ago.. .


WARSAW, Poland (AP) — British billionaire Richard Branson says his space tourism project keeps being pushed back and isn't sure of an exact date for the first launch.

He says it will be at least another 12 or 18 months before the Virgin Galactic venture can offer paid space travel to adventurers.

The founder of the Virgin Group met with students on his first visit to Poland on Wednesday, where he came to launch Virgin Academy, which will help young people kick start their own businesses.

Asked about Virgin Galactic, Branson said he has "stopped counting" days to the launch because it gets delayed "to the next year, to the next year."

More than 100 would-be space tourists have signed up for the $200,000 two-hour trips that go 62 miles (100 kilometers) above Earth.

http://news.yahoo.com/branson-virgin-space-project-keeps-being-delayed-134753117.html


"Shy Virgins" joke goes here.

[Green1]

Burt Rutan a while back had a heart attack. He does still serve in an "advisory role" but also does the same with Mike Griffin for Stratolaunch. Also, remember.. Scaled Composites was bought out! Not the same management.

[Buster's Uncle]

Tell me more; I don't know enough to understand all of that.  I don't even know much about Burt.

[Green1]

Yeah, sure..

Burt Rutan suffered a heart attack last year, since then, he has been in an "advisory role" to Scaled Composites. Mostly "advisory roles" are honorary positions out of respect. Boeing, seeing the future, bought the company.

So... the visionary behind SS1 is now only a figurehead ad not involved in the day to day struggles and beholden to a larger Boeing bueracracy.

[Buster's Uncle]

And what do Scaled Composites and Stratolaunch do?

Tell me more about Burt; pretend I'm a lurker who knows nothing.

[Green1]

Double posting... but to understand Burt and his genius in our time, you must watch his TED talk where he almost got chased off stage for being "subversive"...

Burt Rutan: Entrepreneurs are the future of space flight

Stratolaunch and Scaled Composites have one thing in common: Paul Allen.... Second to Bill Gates. This is the guy that made SS1 possible, not Branson. Stratolaunch has Rutan AND Griffin working together. Conflift of interest?

[Buster's Uncle]

Why? 

Who's Griffin?  Never heard of him before. 

Knew about Paul Allen, of course.  He's done some interesting things with his fortune.

Dunno 'bout a 20 minute vid...  I've opened a second tab so I can let it load while I keep up with the forum.

[Buster's Uncle]

I gotta say that he had me already in the first 30 seconds.

[Buster's Uncle]

Wait, Burt; aerospace engineers are not more creative than me.

[Green1]

Mike Griffen is the FORMER admin of NASA! He is an engineer to the extreme. He is the architect behind the cancelled Constellation Project by NASA. Obama cancelled most of his ambitious plans to settle the moon and asteroids! He was attacked from viscios blogs like rockets and such till Obama removed him and put puppet and shuttle pilot Charlie Bolden in charge. But, I give Charlie one thing.. he is honest if you read between the lines.

[Green1]

I do not think you understand how badass Rutan was before being in a "advisory" position. Melville, who was the first civilllian to get astronaut winngs from the US was required by Rutan to build his own aircraft and fly to him in New Mexico.

[Buster's Uncle]

I understand that Burt is holding my attention.  I don't play most vids people post at all, and he's got me.

I understand that he wants Star Trek, and joyrides for the rich are the first step.  I don't recall where I talked about inspiration as the truest, deepest value of human space exploration recently, but he articulates the concept really well.  This guy gets it.

[Buster's Uncle]

While still having some reservations about the whole private v government thing...

Okay, Burt.  I'm on the bus.  Lead me.

[Buster's Uncle]

I don't recall where I talked about inspiration as the truest, deepest value of human space exploration recently, but he articulates the concept really well.  This guy gets it.

Aha!  Found it!

Nearby Earth-Sized Alien Planet Could Spur Interstellar Exploration

[...]
 
"Why climb the mountain? Because it exists," she told SPACE.com. "That's the human spirit, and it brings with it infinite possibilities — for practical things like technology that improves the human condition and the reality of interstellar exploration but also for lofty things like evolution and global cooperation and who knows — maybe even knowledge of other life in the universe. One can dream."

http://news.yahoo.com/nearby-earth-sized-alien-planet-could-spur-interstellar-162048044.html

That last phrase - no one talks about it much, but a very real benefit of physical space exploration is that people need dreams, and sending probes and to a much greater extent, people feeds that hunger for dreams much better than telescopes ever can.

In the 70's, they wiped their behinds with the inspirational aspect of the space program and flushed in favor boring shuttle/LEO stuff.  $#@! that.  We need guys walking around the Moon and Mars.  The dreams/insiration are a bigger payoff than even the huge tech profit the space program pays.

We need to be working toward building and launching the Unity 30 years ago.

[Green1]

Yeah.... listen to that video... or anything anyone posts from TED. It is no joke. Rutan definately has a problem with only rich folks able to get to space. The dude is not your typical aerospace guy. Then..you understand..