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  • Virgin Galactic

    Virgin Galactic tests Unity's re-entry system for the first time

    by 
    Mariella Moon
    Mariella Moon
    05.02.2017

    Virgin Galactic has successfully tested its newest spacecraft's "feather" re-entry system for the first time. That's what it calls the mechanism wherein the vehicle folds up its twin tail booms so that it can behave more like a capsule and increase stability upon re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere. Virgin has conducted VSS Unity's flight test from the Mojave Air and Space Port after testing its feathering mechanism on the ground extensively. It's imperative for the company to make sure that its re-entry system works perfectly, seeing as it was created to replace a vehicle that broke apart after one of its pilots triggered the same mechanism below the ideal speed.