The Virgin Galactic Gateway to Space
Gateway to Space takes off
by Wong Mei Kay of theedgeproperty.com
SIERRA COUNTY (New Mexico): A dedication ceremony for The Virgin Galactic Gateway to Space, a combined terminal and hangar facility, was held on Tuesday, Oct 18 at the world's first commercial space terminal Spaceport America in Sierra County, New Mexico.
The 120,000 sq ft terminal and hangar facility can support up to two Virgin Galactic's WhiteKnightTwo and five SpaceShipTwo spacelines. The facility was designed by Foster+Partners, working with URS Corporation and New Mexico architects SMPC.
The Gateway will also house all astronaut preparation and celebration facilities, a mission control centre and a friends and family area. Entrance is via a deep channel cut into the landscape while its retaining walls form an exhibition space that documents a history of space exploration alongside the story of the region, said Foster+Partners in a statement.
With minimal embodied carbon and few additional energy requirements, the scheme has been designed to achieve LEED Gold accreditation. Its low-lying form is dug into the landscape to exploit the thermal mass, which buffers the building from the extremes of the New Mexico climate as well as catch the westerly winds for ventilation while daylight is maximized via skylights. Built using local materials and construction techniques, it aims to be both sustainable and sensitive to its surroundings, said the architectural firm.
"The team behind the building had never wavered in their commitment to the monumental task of pioneering safe, affordable and clean access to space, or to demonstrate that they mean business at each step along the way," said Virgin Group chairman Sir Richard Branson at the event.
Virgin Galactic's spacelines are being built to carry six customers on sub-orbital space flights, allowing an out-of-the-seat, zero-gravity experience and offering astounding views of the planet from the black sky of space for tourist astronauts and a unique microgravity platform for researchers.
