Virgin Galactic Spacecraft Crashes in Desert

On Friday, October 31, Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo crashed in the Mojave desert after disintegrating in mid-air going 760 mph. Pilot Pete Siebold was able to eject and parachute to safely, from 50,000 feet, but the co-pilot, Michael Alsbury was killed in the accident. Analysis of the crash reveals that the co-pilot flipped a switch activating flaps in the rear stabilizer, an action called feathering, causing the craft to slow down prematurely and break apart.

Richard Branson, the owner Virgin Galactic, said his space program is “a grand program which has had a horrible setback, but I don’t think anybody watching this program would want us to abandon it at this stage.” Richard Branson’s dream is to be able to offer commercial space flights and the thrill of weightlessness through Virgin Galactic. The SpaceShipTwo design is capable of taking 6 people up to the edge of space, over 68 miles in the air. Branson is the founder of the Virgin Group which also owns Virgin Atlantic Airways, Virgin Mobile, and a plethora of other Virgin branded companies.

One World Trade Center Open for Business

After 13 years and $3.9 billion One World Trade Center, initially known as Freedom Tower, has risen out of the ashes of September 11, 2001, hoping to bring unity where there was division. One World Trade Center is now the tallest building in the United States rising 1,776 feet tall and yes that is symbolic of the year 1776.

The opening of the building is also symbolic of the economic progress and recovery the Manhattan area as achieved. Even though many floors remain empty, more and more tenants are eager to rent. The building now has leased over 58% of its office space with more tenants expected soon. The 104 floor building is reshaping lower Manhattan and reminding the world that New York is resilient and will meet constant challenges head on and emerge triumphant. One World Trade Center is just one of six new towers under construction that will stand by the memorial sites.

Gas Prices Falling for the Wrong Reasons

People love cheap gas and the United States is the world’s biggest consumer of oil using 18,840,000 barrels of oil per day. The next highest country is China at 9,790,000 barrels per day, a little over half that of the U.S. As a result, when the price of oil goes down, along with the price of gas, Americans tend to celebrate the reduced price.

Unfortunately, the drop in price is caused by problems with the global economy. Right now oil prices are going down because the global economy is slow so demand for oil is going down. Remember the rule of supply and demand, when the demand is low and supply is high, the price will inevitably drop. So far, that is what happened. Recently oil prices went up because of fears that ISIS would jeopardize oil exports from the Middle East. ISIS has captured most of Iraq’s oil operations, giving them a large and profitable source of revenue.

Prices will eventually rise when the global economy improves so don’t necessarily look at higher gas prices as a bad thing. Higher prices mean a stronger U.S. dollar and a stronger global economy, both things we desperately need right now in the world.

Photo Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/jfoust/5106876200