(NewsNation Now) — How much would you pay to go to space?
What about $450,000?
That’s how much it will cost you to get a ticket to the edge of space from Virgin Galactic.
The American space flight company founded by entrepreneur Richard Branson opened ticket sales to the public on Wednesday.
Virgin Galactic CEO Michael Colglazier said the plan is to have 1,000 customers take flight later this year.
The 90-minute trip begins on the runway. At approximately 50,000 feet, the spaceship is released from its carrier aircraft, and from there the rocket propels its passenger toward the stars. Within 60 seconds, the passenger arrives in space, reaching a point more than 50 miles above the earth.
While there, the spaceship “gracefully” flips while “astronauts enjoy several minutes of out-of-seat weightlessness and breath-taking views of Earth from the spaceship’s 17 windows,” a press release said.
Virgin Galactic says its purpose is to connect people across the globe to “the love, wonder and awe created by space travel.”
“At Virgin Galactic, we believe that space is transformational,” Colglazier said in a statement.
This isn’t the first time the aerospace company has made a splash. Last year, Branson reached the edge of space with five other crew members on a rocket plane, marking a new era in the private spaceflight industry.
An investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration determined that Branson’s aircraft went off-course, so even though the flight landed safely, the FAA grounded all flights during the investigation.
But with the all-clear, Virgin Galactic is now ready for takeoff.
To be eligible to go to space, people have to be at least 18 years old, and will need a medical screening and health test to verify they are fit to fly.