A luxury balloon capsule that will take passengers to the edge of space for $125,000 per person has completed a major test flight.
Florida-based Space Perspective has successfully flown an unmanned version of its SpaceShip Neptune Excelsior to an altitude of about 100,000 feet.
The flight took off on September 15 from the Voyager Ocean Spaceport off the coast of St. Petersburg, Florida.
The capsule took six hours to reach more than 99% of the Earth’s atmosphere, before undergoing a controlled descent and splashdown.
The test validated several key technologies that will be used in future commercial space flights.
“This is a defining moment for Space Perspective,” said Founder and Chief Technology Officer Tabor McCallum, “not only does this unmanned flight prove our technology, it also brings us closer to making space accessible to everyone.”