As if launching a space tourism company and stocking seats with Linux computers weren't enough, Virgin has now truly endeared itself to the tech community, as the company is going to start offering inflight Wi-Fi and seat-based Ethernet jacks starting in 2008. If passengers don't feel like pulling their notebooks out, they can access the Internet through the entertainment system built into the seat-back. Impressed by the WiFi news, Tech blog Gadgetell has named Virgin Air "Geeks Airline of 2008."—Gregory Mone

Aerospace designer Burt Rutan talks as Kern County fire chief Michael Cody looks on during a news conference near the site of an explosion. Mark J. Terrill/AP Photo 

An explosion at Mojave Spaceport in southern California claimed three lives yesterday and critically injured at least three more individuals. The blast occurred at 2:45 p.m. Thursday during a rocket-motor test being conducted by Burt Rutan’s Scaled Composites.