Construction Begins on Spaceport America

THIS IS A BIG DEAL PEOPLE SIGN ME UP....

Welcome to Spaceportb. The first rule of Spaceport is: you do not talk about Spaceport. The second rule of Spaceport is: you DO NOT talk about Spaceport!

I hope this becomes big.

perhaps it may force space agencies to evolve a bit as space travel becomes commonplace.

If this space port will only have recreation space flights, I don't see how it will ever be profitable. To have commercial flights you need 2+ space ports. Unless Virgin starts building condos in orbit I don't see the purpose of this.

http://wheresthestripclub.com

Your first mistake on this article is in the title. This is not an interstellar airport, it is an airport. Interstellar implies that these spaceships will be flying between star systems, that's what interstellar means. It is a spaceport/airport by the way.

Maybe they could fly to a moon base?

"At the core of NASA's future space exploration is a return to the moon, where we will build a sustainable long term human presence." ~ taken from nasa' website.

Here is another article that gets disconnected from reality. I'll probably be dead before this place reaches the status of an interplanetary space port, much less interstellar. This reminds me of the recent silliness about the flying car. Flying cars fail for four reasons:

They are too expensive for most of us to own and operate, therefore the low volume of sales will not create the production learning curve that cuts cost.

They don't perform as well as a standard airplane.

They are much less utilitarian than a standard motor vehicle.

The gain of being able to fly your car from the nearest airport is trivial compared to the first three reasons. The FAA is not about to let us fly from the nearest section of straight road.

Sign me up!

A little optimism here anyone? Humankind has to start somewhere. We have to start small before we get big. This may look like nothing to you right now, but it's going to develop into something, something spectacular. Virgin Galactic creating this spaceport/airport will start a chain reaction of other companies/people wanting to get involved into the whole space thing; getting other people involved will hopefully make establishing mars and lunar colonies easier. If us humans ever plan on colonizing the cosmos, one of the many first steps needed is to create spaceports to launch spacecraft from. Within 50 years this port could develop into something huge; only time will tell.

It's space, it's the new frontier, just like the American west was before it was colonized. Hopefully humankind technology will advance far enough to take us to amazing places throughout the universe. I predict that by the year 2100, there will be thousands of us living in outer space, living, working, thriving.

Fantastic !! This is so exciting. I feel your pain, JSpartz, we both may be dead by the time this gets rolling , but hey, we have been around for computers , cell phones, cars , planes, ETC. Now we get to watch the next cool step. Maybe they will pick one old geezer to take up into space and you might get lucky. I am quite sure they are terribly sorry for taking so long and making you wait.

As much as I love science, and science fiction, and forward-thinking, this just seems to me to be like the pilgrims building a stage coach station. Aside from pure novelty, there isn't even a hint of anyplace to go yet. I think the loads of money it will take to do this could be currently put to better use. Someday this might be a good idea, but I don't think so just yet.

Gee. Why so pessimistic? I would like to submit exhibit A. The first commercial airport in the United States:
http://www.clevelandairport.com/Portals/images/default/card_2.jpg
Cleveland, 1925. No place else to fly to. People are still alive today who were here when it was built:-)

most of you commenting are ridiculous... Of course there is a market for this.. even if there are no other airports people will pay to go in space.. plain and simple. My guess is that Virgin Galactic needed their own facility because no other airports have the capability to attach the rocket to the bottom of the planes or the capability to refuel the rockets.

Anyway, there's plenty of places to go. Are some people arguing that there aren't many many people willing to pay vast sums just to be able to say "I went into space" or to experience the weightlessness of being outside of the reach of earth's gravity.
And like other commentors have said, we have to start somewhere, and commercial flights to space and back will provide the data needed to push further.
Plus there already are other major players in this industry, and it won't be long until we see some serious civilian tourism to orbit depth.

Even if there is only one port, it could still have a use until a second and third are built. They could put a small observatory in the craft and it would be to space what a glass-bottom boat is to the water.

What astonomer wouldn't want to see the cosmos without ambient city light and that pesky atmosphere getting in the way?

"When I examine myself and my methods of thought, I come to the conclusion that the gift of fantasy has meant more to me than my talent for absorbing positive knowledge."

-Albert Einstein

Well I have signed up to go into space and it is going to be absolutely amazing. Zero G. Seeing the earth from that height. I am Astronaut number 69 and proud that I will be amongst the first to experience this amazing oportunity.

I don't get why people are saying that it has no use with only one port. Every heard of turning around? Not that hard of a concept to grasp.

Honestly, I'm glad someone is taking a step like this. When we finally have interstellar travel, true interstellar travel, then all you pessimists will look pretty stupid.

THIS IS NOT AN INTERSTELLAR PORT!!! Interstellar travel is not possible yet, unless I am far behind. We have NOT reached another star yet! It's Latin: Inter is between; stellus, stellī is star.

Hi There,

Great Gonzales has it right...
Rhetorically, we are no closer to an interstellar space port - than we are to an interplanetary space port - and/or a lunar space port..

NASA won't be checking their luggage at this one - if they ever do get anything going to the moon.

It's a neat graphic though.
It's prettier than a lot of space ports on Star Wars - those were dusty desert dumps.

Interstellar travel is a long way off.
We can't orbit enough hardware to build one big enough.
We can't provide the craft with enough fuel.
The astronauts are going to need gravity - or, the poor little monkey men will decalcify by the time they get there.
Not to mention that they won't live long enough.
And,
The social-political aggregates won't last long enough for them to get there... who would they phone home to?
The interstellar travelers would be stuck with fixed hardware, resources and technology....
All the standards back on Earth would be changing.
By the time they got where they were going, we could have developed a whole new species, bombed ourselves back in to the stone age, - or, destroyed our ecosystems to the point that the planet has sterilized us off it thru boiling and/or frozen us off with an ice age.

That "does" make it sound like it would be worth it to leave.
but
There would be little chance of getting there
and
Less chance that any one back here would cheer your accomplishments.

Finally something that pushes the imagination just like star trek did in the early days. A vision of ourselves and of the future. Its just the financials that worry me and the prospects of whether thet will be able to keep this place open very long before costs overwhelm them.

Economically viable? Hardly
Really pushing development? Don't think so.
Space flight for the masses? No way.
PR? Yeees.

this is just like a roller coaster. You go there, pay a fortune, get your ride, your picture,your wings your cap and go back home. Everybody's happy.
That doesn't make you an astronaut more than going to a race makes you a horse.

So, let's say it like it is: There will always be people willing to pay vast sums of money to play with the latest toy but calling it the future of space flight is really far fetch.
Still i like Mr. Branson a lot for all he has done and how.

As for me, I'd rather use a few grand to "fly" MIGs in Russia.

For the neigh-sayers:

Financial viability?
Richard Branson has invested over $300 million in this venture. Branson has rarely made a bad investment.
New Mexico through bonds has invested $300 million in this venture. The Federal government also has an investment.
In addition to Branson, Armadillo Space, and three other venture capital space flight companies are investing in Spaceport America with more to sign on.
NASA has committed to invest in experimental test flights from Spaceport America.
Peripheral income will come from the thousands of tourists who come to see these flights blast off from the spaceport as well as visiting Roswell, White Sands Missile Range, Alamogordo Space Museum, Trinity site, etc.
The list goes on but I don’t have the time to list them.
The port is 4700 feet above sea level thereby saving fuel in achieving space flight. The port is located adjacent to White Sands Missile Range, which has restricted airspace into infinity. The area is sparsely populated which increases safety.
Trust me folks if America has a chance for a future in space … this is it.
F.W. Brown (author)

This is awsome, they should setup/make a space station in space, so the spaceships travel to the space station and then drops us off goes back. Its like an aiport with terminals and stuff but the spacecrafts go to space.

...at least it looks cool. LOL!

Whitesites Nasa is trying to get the space elevator up so what do you think they would use a spaceport for think

This isn't really the first spaceport. Back in the 1980s I was stationed in England.There was a story in the Englsh news about some rich crazy woman in New Mexico or Arizona (I can't remember which) that built a spaceport and plaed a bet with Lloyds of London that aliens would land there by the year 2000. She bet $100, they gave her 10,000 to 1 odds.
I may be little off on the details, but the BBC called it the planet's first spaceport.

Our fragile planet, controled by few crezy and selfish groups,in a dangerous universe.Space is our only hope.95% of species have disappeared in life evolution.

To clear up a statement said a few times about there zero effect of Earths gravity while space... one must understand that there is always the presence of Earths gravity and that as you move away from the Earth the gravitational force roughly decreases inversely over the radius squared, the radius is the distance at which you are located from the center of the Earth. You just have to imagine that the spaceship/your body is orbiting at a velocity that mimics the falling motion around the earth which allows you to feel like you are in a zero gravity environment. But in reality, there is never a zero gravity state.

To clear up a statement said a few times about there zero effect of Earths gravity while space... one must understand that there is always the presence of Earths gravity and that as you move away from the Earth the gravitational force roughly decreases inversely over the radius squared, the radius is the distance at which you are located from the center of the Earth. You just have to imagine that the spaceship/your body is orbiting at a velocity that mimics the falling motion around the earth which allows you to feel like you are in a zero gravity environment. But in reality, there is never a zero gravity state.

That is awsome!!!!!!!! I see Burt Rutans Space Ship One in that picture! It is cool to know that they are working to make affordable space tourism possible!

Everyone who thinks that this is such a great idea, then by all means throw YOUR tax dollars at it, not mine. I live in Dona Ana county, NM and can't imagine a worse endeavor for my local taxes...oh, not to mention my federal tax dollars (double taxation). Also, when did I sign up to finance private ventures? Do I get a free trip to space since I helped fund this black-hole of a project? When (not if) the company folds, do I get to claim a business loss on my tax return?

The inevitable abortion of this pregnant tax beast will no doubt be seen within the next 5 years.

I do not believe that this is funded at all with any amount of tax dollars. This is completely privately funded project. So now you do not have to worry.

None of your tax dollars are going to this. Sir Richard Branson and the Virgin group are privately funding it. So quit whining about your local taxes when you don't even know where they're going. Whine about Obama's new tax, even though he promised no taxes. "JSPARTZ" are you serious? what do you think they said to the Wright Brothers, two humble bicycle makers, who thought they could. at first nobody believed them and everyone thought they were crazy, but now there are even jetpacks and space shuttles and airplanes and Virgin Galactic Spaceports. So who's disconnected from reality NOW?
now there going to crash a device with all sorts of sensors into a craters shadow on the north and south poles of the "dark side of the moon" to see if there was ever water there, because if there was and it froze to ice, then it will still be there because it would never see any part of the sun.

I guess crazy_kid445 lived up to his name (must be related to "Sir Branson"). Do a search on "Spaceport funding" and you'll soon realize that part of the funding is generated by local taxes. Research before typing kido.....

Whatever Hazegray even if it is partly funded by local taxes, you probably wouldn't know a good investment if it knocked you on the head. Projects like this may not have a direct benefit to anyone, just like NASA going to the moon didn't directly benefit anyone. The problem is you can't predict how something like this will benefit you in the future. Do you realize how many world changing inventions were products of similar projects? The microwave, the internet, just to name a few.

Don't tell the country not to fund something just because you have a crappy vision of the future.

Mad Rocket Scientist

Finally, a port to launch the KIWI nuclear rocket to Mars that we built back in the mid 1960's.

If 'nukes' are allowed.

It took a private investor with a dream and loads of cash, to take such a bold step. KUDOS.

While I am more than enthusiastic regarding Earth's space programs in general, Hazegray has a VERY valid point. Our present economic woes are very much due to the lack of responsible management of our tax dollars(at least in large part), and no municipality, state or federal tax dollars should be funneled into these types of projects without validation through popular vote. As I recall from my public education, our government is not supposed to be able to keep,or hold, public funds in excess of the amounts needed to sustain the requirements of our nation, nor is it legal for our government to invest in private business concerns. We have seen many liberties taken with these tenets wisely set up by our founding fathers lately. That being said, I would choose that some IRONCLAD amount be spent, not a blank check,with endless overruns, extensions, scrapped ill conceived plans and equipment which then is thrown away even if salable...and most of all; responsible oversight and public transparency. We all know that 99% of secrets are in fact no secret at all, right? So let the people SEE what is being done for our children's future. Let them interact in development forums and virtual workshops. Free tours and REAL space camp for ANY American student with 4.0 gpa or higher. We, those of us here, can be doing much more than sitting on our butt blogging like me right now. Personally, I push space and the EAA, which is a youth based program for young aviation enthusiasts, centered in Oshkosh Wisconsin. In the next 20 years I predict to my kids that we will need 100 times the personnel in aerospace. What do you tell yours? That they will inherit the same crappy poor excuse of a world that we did, only 100 times worse? I know people who do just that. I refuse to be one of these, instead choosing to expose mine to every dream I can think of. Wishing R.B and B.R the best of good fortune, I think I'll get off the soapbox now. Thanks for the forum, PopSci!

When Walt Disney chose a lowly city named Anaheim, California almost 54 years to the day to open Disneyland. He created something beyond common thought OR need. So is Spaceport, maybe not today, BUT for sure tomorrow. So it's not traveling to the stars as the word purist QQ about. We move the envelope of off Earth travel. Whether that is sport, adventure, or exploration is for the future Pop Sci writers, imagine one day we will be in the 100 year ago article, haha - I relish that thought. Now shut up and bring it already.

So let me get this straight. Until we solve the worlds problems we should not go into space? Do you all realize we have been trying to solve the worlds problems for decades? No progress, you know why? Constant technology growth leads to less than stable environment for economies. It is not likely we will ever find a person unity for the economy. Tell me one nation in the history of man kind that has had an economy that has stayed stable for more than 50 years. EVERY country goes through ups and downs. Should we GIVE up on our dreams because we have trouble managing a few dollars? The world is an ever changing place. We should not ignore the future because the present isn't perfect.

Also Virgin Galactic will not only send space tourists into space (they have thousands who signed up already btw). They will as well send sattalites into orbit. They have been testing their rocket launching abilities from the white knight. So far their rocket to launch satalites has proven successful in early tests of its engines capablities.

So do not think this is merely a black hole of money. This is but a first step. And knowing the private sector it will advance a hundred times faster than NASA ever dreamed of. If there is profit to be made...technology will advance.