Tag: commercial spacecraft

The KLM “Claim You Place in Space” Winner Is…

space-trip-klmWe have a winner in the KLM “Claim your place in space” contest. Just two hours ago, the company announced the winner on their webesite and twitter feed. And it turns out the winner is… not me, dangit! But congratulations are in order to Pedro of Brazil, who won the contest by being closest to the ticket. So it seems he will be the one to fly aboard the SXC Lynx Spacecraft when it makes its maiden passenger flight!

For those who are unaware or don’t recall, the KLM giveaway was a social media promotional contest, where a special team deployed an orbital balloon from the Nevada desert and people were able to vote online as to where it would end up. This consisted of selecting a altitude where the balloon would finally burst (up to 40 km above sea level) and how far it would drift from where it took off from.

KLM_ticketWith his estimate of 31.0 km, a drift distance of 79.8 km and a drift direction of 26 degrees, Pedro was closest to where the balloon actually ended up – with an estimate of 14.7 km above sea level. Myself, I bet it would make it as high as 39.0 km, which seemed to place me in with the majority. In fact, judging from the winning ticket, it seemed no one bettered it would make it less than 31 km, which it didn’t make by half. Boy, were we off!

So good luck Pedro as the Lynx takes you into low orbit and achieve zero gravity. I am… so happy for you, you rotten bastard! All I can say is, you better write about it in excruciating detail and take plenty of cool pics, because I plan to write about it!


Source: space.klm.com

KLM – Claim Your Place In Space

KLM-Space-balloonOnce again, my boundless gratitude – and tumultuous envy! – to Raven Lunatick for learning about this before me and making me aware of it. It’s called the “Claim Your Place In Space” challenge, a social media campaign that offers a ticket on a maiden space voyage, and which is being hosted by the Royal Aviation Company – or Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij (KLM), as they are known in the Netherlands.

In just a few days time – eight days and fourteen hours as of the time of this article’s writing – they will be launching a high altitude balloon from the Nevada Desert that will ascend into Earth’s orbit. When and where the balloon pops is the subject of the social media campaign they are conducting, and people are encouraged to place bets by selecting the specific altitude and grid references where it will happen.

SXC-001_2-600x392The person who is closest will win the ultimate prize: a flight aboard the companies new zero gravity SXC Lynx Spacecraft! Much like Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo, this aerospace ship is a prototype that is intended to serve as the mainstay for the company’s commercial space flight fleet in the near future. But unlike the SS2, this vehicle is capable of performing its own take offs as well as landing.

Also relying on a rocket engine, but weighing considerably less than the SS2, the plane has successfully demonstrated the ability to perform vertical takeoffs from a runway, achieve a maximum speed of over mach 2.9, and achieve a suborbital ceiling 100 km above sea level. The entire flight will last only a few minutes, and aside from the pilot only one person will be on board… the winner!SXC-flight-information-space-expedition-astronaut-e1349979084549

To enter, simply go to space.klm.com and place your bets on where and how high the balloon will go. Then join me, Raven, and anyone else looking for a free trip to space in waiting with baited breath for the official draw on April 22nd. I wish everyone who enters luck, but you’ll forgive me if I secretly want this all to myself! Go orbital balloon, hit my grid spot, pleaaaase! Daddy needs a flight into space!

And of course, be sure to check out this promotional video:


Source: space.klm.com