SpaceShipOne's 2nd Shot at X Prize Slated for Monday

Set to Soar: First X Prize Flight This Week
The flight plan for SpaceShipOne. (Image credit: Scaled Composites, LLC)

The second attempt by the rocketplane SpaceShipOne to soar into space and snag the $10 million Ansari X Prize is planned for Monday, officials announced last night.

SpaceShipOne made the first of two required suborbital space treks on Wednesday. The flight included a scary few moments at the top, when the ship rolled about 20 times. A known control problem was responsible for the unplanned acrobatics.

To win the prize, the privately built, three-person craft must fly to at least 62 miles (100 kilometers) a second time within two weeks. After Wednesday's problems, it was not immediately clear when the second attempt would be made.

SpaceShipOne topped out at 337,500 feet on its first crack at the X Prize. That's 63.9 miles (102.9 kilometers). It could have gone higher, pilot Mike Melvill said, but he cut the engine off early, once he knew he would reach the X Prize altitude and so that he could get the ship out of the roll.

Melvill and Rutan said after Wednesday's flight that at no time was SpaceShipOne out of control. Rutan characterized the problem as a "spin-stabilized" roll. He said there is a "known deficiency" in the craft that caused the roll.

It is not known whether any changes will be made to SpaceShipOne before Monday's launch.

  • X Prize and SpaceShipOne: Full Coverage
    Read an account of the tense moments of the first flight and watch the a live webcast second attempt.

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