At noon local time on Thursday, Virgin Galactic's commercial manned space travel "Galactic 02" mission was successfully completed, which is also the company's first time sending tourists to space suborbital space, marking a new stage in the space travel business. Jon Goodwin, an 80-year-old British, was on this spacecraft and, after returning to Earth from space, exclaimed: "This is the best thing I've ever done."
Goodwin cheering after a successful voyage Source: The Mirror
According to the Mirror on August 10, there were six people boarding the ship and flying into space, including three staff members and three passengers - Jon Goodwin and a mother and daughter Keisha Schahaff and Anastatia Mayers, who won seats through a charity lottery.
It is reported that Jon Goodwin, who is 80 years old this year, is a former Olympian who participated in the 1972 Olympics as a British canoeist, and his 1985 Arctic canoe competition record has not been broken. In 1969, Goodwin saw Armstrong's landing on the moon on TV, and since then he has planted a "space dream" in his heart. In 2005, he spent $250,000 to book a Virgin Galactic space travel voyage, and is looking forward to making all kinds of preparations for it.
Goodwin hugged his wife after the voyage Source: The Mirror
However, as he grew older, Goodwin's body was no longer as strong as when he was younger. In 2014, he faced a huge problem when he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Fortunately, Virgin Galactic did not turn Goodwin away for physical reasons, but still welcomed him aboard the spacecraft and expressed his belief that Goodwin would achieve his dream and complete the trip.
In order to mitigate the effects of Parkinson's disease and prepare for going to space, Goodwin insisted on daily exercise, and after his diagnosis, he also climbed Kilimanjaro and cycled down the mountain. With his unremitting efforts, Goodwin finally landed Virgin Galactic after waiting for 18 years and saw the Earth in space. After leaving the cabin, he said, "It's the best thing I've ever done in my life." Seen from space, there is a pure beauty in the Earth, which is completely surreal."
It is reported that the Virgin Galactic ticket has now risen to $450,000. Goodwin's wife, Pauline, revealed that her husband felt he had "picked up a big bargain." On the morning of the spacecraft, Goodwin's family came to support him, and Pauline said that his family was very proud of him and hoped to inspire others with Parkinson's to understand that their possibilities are limitless.
Goodwin's family watches the spaceship he was riding on lifted off Source: The Mirror
It is reported that this voyage made Goodwin the oldest astronaut in British history and the second Parkinson's patient in human history to go into space. Previously, American astronaut Michael Clifford landed on Russia's Mir space station on a 1996 mission and performed a 6-hour spacewalk after being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.
Jiupai News Intern Reporter Sun Zhiwei
[Source: Jiupai News]
Statement: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author, if there is a source error or infringement of your legitimate rights and interests, you can contact us through email, we will deal with it in time. Email: [email protected]