US space tourism firm Virgin Galactic on Sunday pushed back by 90 minutes the highly anticipated launch of its passenger rocket plane, citing prior bad weather. “Overnight weather delayed the start of flight preparations, but we are on track to fly today with a newly scheduled time,” the company tweeted. The Unity22 mission is now scheduled for takeoff from the Spaceport of America, a US launch site located near the New Mexico town of Truth or Consequences, at 14:30 GMT (10:30 am ET). The 22nd VSS Unity test flight — the first fully crewed one — will briefly take two pilots and four mission specialists beyond Earth’s atmosphere, before landing at the spaceport. British billionaire Richard Branson, the Virgin Galactic founder, will be among mission specialists. He will “evaluate the private astronaut experience,” according to the mission’s statement.
