Virgin Galactic is one step closer to taking hundreds of rich people -- and possibly Stephen Hawking -- to suborbital space.
Richard Branson's spaceflight company will unveil a highly anticipated new SpaceShipTwo, which is designed to take space tourists to suborbital space, on Feb. 19 at its Mojave Desert facility in California. The ship, which would let passengers see the limb of the Earth from the blackness of space, will feature modifications following the company's deadly accident in 2014, when its first SpaceShipTwo was destroyed, killing one pilot and leaving another hospitalized with serious injuries.
Since that time, engineers working with the spaceflight company have worked to recover from the accident, updating some aspects of the space plane's design.
"I think we are in a much better place than we might have expected in the period immediately after the accident, and that's because our team came together, our customers stuck with us, and honestly, we believe that the vehicle itself is sound," George Whitesides, Virgin Galactic CEO, told Mashable in October.
Branson has invited famed theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking to the unveiling, if his health permits, according to a company spokesperson.
In a Dec. 17 blog post, Branson wrote that Hawking is one of the people he most admires in the world, calling him "an undisputed genius who has opened our eyes to the wonders of the universe, while also happening to be a kind and delightful man."
"He is the only person I have given a free ticket with Virgin Galactic, and he is signed up to fly as a Future Astronaut with us if his health permits it," Branson wrote. Hawking has suffered with a form of motor neurone disease since he was in his early 20s.
"We are very honoured that Stephen has agreed to help us unveil our new spaceship in February if he is feeling well enough," Branson continued. "He has long been an inspiration for all the team, as well as an enthusiastic advocate for our goals of democratising access to space for the benefit of life on earth."
Why Professor Stephen Hawking has the only free @VirginGalactic ticket to #space https://t.co/Aiq6lg0pgk pic.twitter.com/uI8PtH5Tyj— Virgin (@Virgin) December 20, 2015
Virgin faces increasingly crowded skies
Other spaceflight companies are also aiming to fly suborbital trips to space and back again for paying customers.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' rocket company Blue Origin is planning to use its suborbital New Shepard vehicle and capsule to bring space tourists to suborbital space.
Blue Origin recently performed a test flight that brought its rocket and capsule back to Earth after flying to the edge of space. Elon Musk's SpaceX has been doing its own reusability tests on a somewhat grander scale.
The company brought back the first stage of its Falcon 9 rocket to Earth on Dec. 22, landing it in Cape Canaveral, Florida after helping to bring 11 satellites to orbit.