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Closer to a Space-Travel Future: Branson Prepares for Flight to Outer Space (cbsnews.com) 31

Posted by EditorDavid from the giant-leaps-for-mankind dept.
In two hours, Richard Branson (and five other Virgin Galactic employees) will attempt a historic flight to the edge of outer space. Bloomberg points out it will be followed 9 days later by Jeff Bezos's rocket trip with Blue Origin on July 20.

"Yeah, there's a little bit of competition in the who's going first or when things are happening," Virgin President Mike Moses, a former space shuttle manager at NASA, told CBS News. "But it's really not a race. It's not a competition. I know that sounds maybe a little shallow or disingenuous, but it's not. "It's a small community. I know dozens of people who work at Blue Origin, I know dozens and dozens of people at SpaceX, and we all used to work together at NASA. And I wish every single one of them the best.... Because all of us together is what's going to get humans into space and our culture to recognize that space travel is the foundation for the future for everyone..."

"This has been a long journey for him," Mike Moses said of Branson. "He's like a kid in a candy store here in training this week. He's bouncing around, he's happy, excited. ... But that excitement is really infectious. And so the whole crew is feeling it."
CNN points out that Branson has "narrowly avoided being killed numerous times in his nearly 71 years," including dangerous stunts like bunjee jumping that left him bloody and injured, as well as accidents during long-distance balloon flights while attempting to set records.

Here's how Branson describes some of them in his second autobiography, "Finding My Virginity," which includes an appendix called "75 Close Shaves": 1972: Survived a fishing boat sinking on honeymoon with my first wife, Kristen, off Mexico. We decided to jump off the boat and swim for shore, while the others stayed put -- we were the only survivors.

1976: Flew a microlight aircraft by mistake. It was the first time I'd sat in it, I had no idea how to fly it and accidentally took off. I was pulling wires out desperately. I cut the engine and managed to crash-land into a field. My instructor died in an accident the next day...

1986: On my first time skydiving, there was one cord that opened the parachute and one that got rid of it. I pulled the wrong cord by mistake. I was falling through the air before an instructor managed to yank my spare ripcord...

1989: I decided to make an entrance to my wedding with Joan, dangling from a helicopter in an all-white suit. I dropped into the shallow end of the pool by mistake, smashed my legs, and spent the whole wedding hobbling.
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Closer to a Space-Travel Future: Branson Prepares for Flight to Outer Space More

Closer to a Space-Travel Future: Branson Prepares for Flight to Outer Space

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  • just going to fly really high in his rocket plane. I mean how many orbits? Flying by the ISS? Or even doing re entry and if your not doing re entry were you in space? This just seems like such a load of billionaire ego BS.

  • Quantum immortality? (Score:3)

    by alexgieg ( 948359 ) <alexgieg@gmail.com> on Sunday July 11, 2021 @07:34AM (#61571831) Homepage

    This guy seems to be the living evidence for Quantum immortality, aka, the idea some adepts of the Many Worlds Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics have that, since the universe is constantly branching in infinitely many ways, there's always going to be a world path in which something that should have killed someone didn't, meaning there are infinitely many immortals walking around amidst a tiny percentage of those infinitely-many branches.

    • Death certificate: he died of wave function collapse.

    • That just means there's some other path where you are one of those lucky few. Sure it does jack shit for you here and now, but perhaps the thought will be comforting. I'm just glad to be on the path where I'm about to have another coffee, so I'll take what luck I can get.

      • Narrator: "But the joke was on Alvin, as this another coffee was the very thing that killed him."

        Rest in peace, alvinrod!

  • Can we stop pretending that duplicating a feat that the several governments accomplished 70s years ago is worth constant news coverage?

    Let us know when it's successful or Branson has died in the attempt. Until then, this is pointless.

    • Can we stop pretending that duplicating a feat that the several governments accomplished 70s years ago is worth constant news coverage?

      They're trying to entertain us poors with tales of the richs and their toys.

    • Can we stop pretending that duplicating a feat that the several governments accomplished 70s years ago is worth constant news coverage?

      Let us know when it's successful or Branson has died in the attempt. Until then, this is pointless.

      Kind of like how boring it is to watch Falcon 9 first stages land, but we keep getting the breathless reports. I'm interested in the launches, and the crew returns.

      But here's the thing - as much as I'm bored by that candle landing party trick, others love it, so while I might grumble a bit, why not show it?

      As to the whys though, while yes, many people have gained their astronaut wings already, what is interesting is the number of different ways we are learning how to do this stuff. We're leaning, we're

    • Re:Just stop (Score:4, Insightful)

      by cascadingstylesheet ( 140919 ) on Sunday July 11, 2021 @09:52AM (#61572131) Journal

      Can we stop pretending that duplicating a feat that the several governments accomplished 70s years ago is worth constant news coverage?

      Let us know when it's successful or Branson has died in the attempt. Until then, this is pointless.

      That a private person can duplicate a feat that required massive government efforts? Seems newsworthy.

    • Space travel is getting cheaper and cheaper.
      If this leads to a normal human like me being able to go to space, then I'm very interested in it.

  • He had to redefine what was "space" just to do this stunt. And since he's mismanaged pretty much everything regarding SpaceShipTwo...well, I sincerely hope no one gets hurt.
  • because it's below 100 km altitude
    • I think the limit is 100 miles. Regardless, pilots sitting on barely controlled bombs have been doing that, going out to 100Miles, for decades. Go see movie "Right Stuff". Almost getting to outer space is like almost getting a date with the girl/guy of your dreams. No prize for almost. Join the list of "also rans".
  • Perhaps we should consider this sort of thing analogous to the building the Tower of Babel, trying to reach Heaven and touch God?
    That's the level of arrogance and Conspicuous Consumption these 'men' (are they even human anymore?) are displaying.
    Captains of Industry on the level of people like Branson and Bezos could do so much good for the rest of humanity with just the money it takes for stunts like this, but they'd rather spend it on themselves. I have nothing but contempt for them.

    There isn't going

    • Perhaps we should consider this sort of thing analogous to the building the Tower of Babel, trying to reach Heaven and touch God?

      That's the level of arrogance and Conspicuous Consumption these 'men' (are they even human anymore?) are displaying.

      Captains of Industry on the level of people like Branson and Bezos could do so much good for the rest of humanity with just the money it takes for stunts like this, but they'd rather spend it on themselves. I have nothing but contempt for them.

      I have the opposite view. To me the worst rich person is one who hoards all of their cash.

      The rich spending their money (on anything) is better than the rich hoarding it. At least it goes back into someone's pocket and pockets of supporting industries.

      What's the difference between buying a little sailboat and the Maltese Falcon?

      What's the difference between taking up sky diving on vacation and taking a little trip in a weird looking vehicle 9 miles up?

      Sure they cost more yet perhaps not when you account f

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by RevDisk ( 740008 )
      I see it quite the opposite. If humans never leave Earth, we're dead. Tomorrow or a million years from now. From a certain perspective, the Captains of Industry folks might be doing the most good for humanity that has ever been achieved. Or not. We won't know for a very long time.

      Governments have often no incentivize to reduce costs. Nothing SpaceX is doing is something NASA could not. Except SpaceX can do it for 10% of the cost, which same or higher level of safety. Possibly 5% of the cost. The differen
  • I know you have to make some money, but please stop it, you're embarrassing yourselves (and doing your knees irreparable damage). Branson isn't more than a single minor headline news at this point.

  • Richard Branson is actually a trenchcoat full of cats. It would explain all the extra lives he seems to get.

  • How did he never Darwin himself?
  • superslotx 100% https://superslotx.com/ [superslotx.com]
  • There, I said it, downmod me.

    How can we dance
    When our earth is turning
    How do we sleep
    While our beds are burning

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