Virgin Galactic unveils Tourist SpaceShip

British billionaire Richard Branson and the aerospace designer Burt Rutan unveiled an interesting model of a spaceship-cum-aircraft, aiming to allow people to enjoy sub-orbital joy rides on regular basis.

SpaceShipTwo, as they call it, will take passengers about 62 miles above Earth and test flights are expected to begin this year. Currently, Branson’s Virgin Galactic is charging $200,000 for a short trip into space.

"We really do want to have a situation where hundreds of thousands of people who want to experience space travel are able to do so," said Branson at a media event at the American Museum of Natural History in Manhattan. "Even though the dollar isn't worth much anymore, $200,000 is still too expensive for the majority of people," he said. "Within five years of launching, I would hope the price would come down fairly dramatically."

He described the ship being built in the Mojave Desert, as breathtakingly beautiful. Alongside SpaceShipTwo at the museum, was a model of the big, four-engine jet that will be required to launch the jet into the space.

The White Knight Two, a twin-fuselage airplane will carry the spaceship into the sky underneath a single 140-foot wing.

Carbon composite materials will be used for the construction of the main spacecraft. The 60 feet (18 meters) long spacecraft will be fitted with large, movable feather-shaped vertical fins at the back, to make reentry into the earth's atmosphere safer, Rutan said.

The ship, according to Virgin is 60 percent complete. Six passengers and two pilots could be seated in the cabin, which will be about the size of a big business jet's cabin but with more headroom.

Dubbed ‘Eve’ after Branson's mother, the spaceship will have 18-inch-diameter windows on all sides that will enable the passengers to views the Earth clearly.

Rutan’s SpaceShipOne was given the Ansari X Prize for privately funded space flight in 2004.

More than 200 people have already registered for Virgin Galactic’s sightseeing space trip, making up more than $30 million in deposits. A cheaper ticket is sure to attract larger groups of travelers.