Photos capture Virgin spaceship 'mid-air explosion'
- 10 years ago
++THIS EDIT REPLACES EDIT NUMBER 6111 BY THE SAME NAME BECAUSE IT WAS INITIALLY SENT TO THE WRONG CLIENTS++
Newly released photos appear to show the deadly mid-air explosion of the Virgin Galactic passenger spaceship during a test flight on Friday.
A jet airplane had carried the craft into the sky for a high-altitude mid-air launch over the Mojave desert north of Los Angeles.
But moments after the spaceship separated from the plane, an explosion brought the test flight to a fiery end.
Escaping the blast, one pilot ejected and parachuted to the ground, surviving with serious injuries.
Another pilot's body was found in the wreckage.
Virgin's founder Richard Branson is set to meet with his space team near the crash site on Saturday.
He posted on his website: "Space is hard - but worth it."
Newly released photos appear to show the deadly mid-air explosion of the Virgin Galactic passenger spaceship during a test flight on Friday.
A jet airplane had carried the craft into the sky for a high-altitude mid-air launch over the Mojave desert north of Los Angeles.
But moments after the spaceship separated from the plane, an explosion brought the test flight to a fiery end.
Escaping the blast, one pilot ejected and parachuted to the ground, surviving with serious injuries.
Another pilot's body was found in the wreckage.
Virgin's founder Richard Branson is set to meet with his space team near the crash site on Saturday.
He posted on his website: "Space is hard - but worth it."