Space tourists aren't the only ones who want to fly aboard private rocketships.
A nonprofit research organisation has signed a deal with Virgin Galactic to conduct experiments in suborbital space.
Virgin Galactic saidthe Southwest Research Institute bought two tickets for its scientists to ride aboard the six-passenger SpaceShipTwo. Each ticket costs $200,000.
Engineers are flight testing SpaceShipTwo in California's Mojave Desert. There's no date for when commercial flights will begin.
Built by famed aerospace designer Burt Rutan, SpaceShipTwo is based on a prototype that won a $10 million prize in 2004 for being the first manned private rocket to reach space. - Sapa-AP