SpaceShipOne makes its second official Ansari X-Prize attempt today. If it's a success, then the X-Prize has a winner and a new chapter in the history books begins. I watched the live space.com webcast of last week's flight, and it was incredibly exciting and dramatic. I'll definitely be glued to today's broadcast this afternoon (UK time), and I urge you to do the same.
A few years ago I was publically sceptical about the chances of the X-Prize being claimed at all. The impressive advances made by the teams -- this one and several of the others -- made a believer out of me some months ago. Good luck to the SS1 team -- millions around the world are cheering you on.
Update: The flight was a success, and the prize has been claimed. This flight went without a hitch -- no drama this time. It looked almost routine, but the significance of the achievement should not be underestimated.
Ironically, on the same day that a new era began, one of the pioneers of manned spaceflight died. L. Gordon Cooper was one of the Mercury Seven, the original group of astronauts selected in 1959 from the best test pilots the USA had to offer. He was the sixth American in space. He died yesterday at the age of 77.