The still waters just south of Centre Island were transformed yesterday morning into Cape Canaveral North, as a Canadian entry in the $10 million (U.S.) Ansari X Prize competition carried out a splashdown test of its crew cabin. It looked like something from the early days of NASA, except the cabin was unmanned. (Oh yes. And the U.S. navy wasn’t there.)
Nonetheless, the test takes Canadian Arrow one small step closer to making its first manned suborbital flight before the end of the year, and to eventually carrying passengers who’ll pay good coin to kiss the cheek of space.
“This is kind of like that last of six tests before you put human beings on board the vehicle,” said the team’s leader, Geoff Sheerin.
Everybody wins from this sort of competition.