Mar 3 2005
From The Space Library
J. Stephen Fossett landed the Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer experimental aircraft in Salinas, Kansas, after flying the first solo, nonstop, non-refueled, around-the-world airplane trip. The flight had lasted three days, during which Fossett had not slept and had only consumed 12 milkshakes. The craft, designed by X Prize-winning SpaceShipOne creator Burt Rutan, carried NASA's advanced experimental Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS) transceiver, the Low Power Transceiver (LPT) that NASA researchers believed would provide a flexible and inexpensive option for relaying information between spacecraft. NASA had placed the new transceiver on board GlobalFlyer to test the device's function during a real flight, especially its performance in delivering a constant video feed. NASA had loaned GlobalFlyer a modified version of its Personal Cabin Pressure Monitor to alert the pilot of potentially dangerous or deteriorating cabin pressure. Because the background noise in GlobalFlyer's cockpit was too loud for the pilot to hear an alarm, the modified monitor vibrated to signal a problem. The mission had successfully overcome periodic failures of GlobalFlyer's navigation system. Furthermore, while passing through Japanese airspace, the aircraft had appeared to be running out of fuel too quickly, but a solid tailwind had helped Fossett avoid making a landing in Hawaii. (NASA, “NASA Technology Supports Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer,” news release 05-068, 3 March 2005, http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2005/mar/HQ_05068_globalflyer_congrats.html (accessed 29 June 2009); John Kelly, “NASA Helps Record Flight,” Florida Today (Brevard, FL), 9 March 2005.)
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