According to reporters in the Americas, Keisha Schahaff and her daughter Anastasia Mayers will become the first female astronauts from Antigua and Barbuda and the first mother-daughter duo from the Caribbean to travel into space.
The mother and daughter will board the Galactic 02 spacecraft from Spaceport America in New Mexico, USA, on August 10 for their inaugural private spaceflight with astronauts from Virgin Galactic. This marks the second commercial flight into space.
Keisha Schahaff and her daughter Anastasia Mayers.
The Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority will host two public screenings on August 10 to allow citizens to follow this historic event. Colin C. James, Executive Director of the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority, emphasized that the space journey of these female astronauts will inspire those who dream of exploring space and will serve as a memorable milestone for the people of this Caribbean island nation.
Special guests are expected to attend the screening, including the Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Gaston Browne, the founder of Virgin Galactic, Richard Branson, and Jamaican-American astronaut Christopher Huie, who earlier this year became the 19th Black astronaut.
Previously, Virgin Galactic successfully completed its first commercial flight to the edge of space on June 29. The Galactic 01 flight, lasting approximately 75 minutes, occurred two years after the first crewed test flight on the company’s VSS Unity spacecraft. This trip marked a significant milestone for Virgin Galactic, which has been developing this commercial service for nearly 20 years while facing numerous challenges.
The U.S. space and air force agencies define an astronaut as anyone who has flown at least 80 km above the Earth. Virgin Galactic’s first commercial flight into space took guests to an altitude of 85.1 km above the New Mexico desert but did not complete an orbital flight around the Earth.
Virgin Galactic uses a “mothership” that takes off from a runway, ascends to altitude, and then propels VSS Unity into space with a rocket at speeds approaching Mach 3 (three times the speed of sound) before returning to Earth. Passengers experience a few minutes of weightlessness and can glimpse the curvature of the planet.
Virgin Galactic has sold approximately 800 tickets for commercial space flights, including 600 tickets priced between $200,000 and $250,000 each, and 200 tickets priced at $450,000 each. Many film stars and celebrities have become some of the first ticket buyers. However, Virgin Galactic’s program faced setbacks in 2014 when a spacecraft disintegrated mid-air during a test, injuring the chief pilot and resulting in the death of the co-pilot.
Virgin Galactic plans to conduct monthly commercial flights following the successful launch of the Galactic 02 spacecraft on August 10. The company is competing with Blue Origin, the space travel company founded by billionaire Jeff Bezos. Blue Origin’s New Shepard has not launched since September 2022 due to an incident during an uncrewed research flight.
