X Prize Two

From Space News:

Anyone who wants to follow in the shoes of Burt Rutan and win the next big space prize will have to build a spacecraft capable of taking a crew of no fewer than five people to an altitude of 400 kilometers and complete two orbits of the Earth at that altitude. Then they have to repeat that accomplishment within 60 days.

1. The spacecraft must reach a minimum altitude of 400 kilometers (approximately 250 miles).

2. The spacecraft must reach a minimum velocity sufficient to complete two (2) full orbits at altitude before returning to Earth.

3. The spacecraft must carry no less than a crew of five (5) people.

4. The spacecraft must dock or demonstrate its ability to dock with a Bigelow Aerospace inflatable space habitat, and be capable of remaining on station at least six (6) months.

5. The spacecraft must perform two (2) consecutive, safe and successful orbital missions within a period of sixty (60) calendar days, subject to Government regulations;

6. No more than twenty percent (20 percent) of the spacecraft may be composed of expendable hardware;

7. The contestant must be domiciled in the United States of America.

8. The contestant must have its principal place of business in the United States of America.

9. The Competitor must not accept of utilize government development funding related to this contest of any kind, nor shall there be any government ownership of the competitor. Usin government test facilities shall be permitted.

10. The spacecraft must complete its two (2) missions safely and successfully, with all five (5) crew members aboard for the second qualifying flight, before the competition’s deadline of Jan. 10, 2010.The Rules:

The spacecraft must reach a minimum altitude of 400 kilometers (approximately 250 miles);

The spacecraft must reach a minimum velocity sufficient to complete two (2) full orbits at altitude before returning to Earth;

The spacecraft must carry no less than a crew of five (5) people;

The spacecraft must dock or demonstrate its ability to dock with a Bigelow Aerospace inflatable space habitat, and be capable of remaining on station at least six (6) months;

The spacecraft must perform two (2) consecutive, safe and successful orbital missions within a period of sixty (60) calendar days, subject to Government regulations;

No more than twenty percent (20 percent) of the spacecraft may be composed of expendable hardware;

The contestant must be domiciled in the United States of America.

The contestant must have its principal place of business in the United States of America.

The Competitor must not accept of utilize government development funding related to this contest of any kind, nor shall there be any government ownership of the competitor. Usin government test facilities shall be permitted.

The spacecraft must complete its two (2) missions safely and successfully, with all five (5) crew members aboard for the second qualifying flight, before the competition’s deadline of Jan. 10, 2010.