Virgin Galactic has named its new spaceship Apeiron. Its name comes from an old Greek word meaning ‘without limits’. Thousands of people from 83 countries voted to choose the name. The company plans to start flights with paying passengers early in the April–June period of 2027, from Spaceport America in New Mexico.
Apeiron has six passenger seats. It will take the place of Unity, which had four. Unity made its last flight with paying passengers in June 2024. The new spaceship is part of Virgin Galactic’s plan to take more people into space and fly more often.
A plane called Eve will carry Apeiron to about 50,000 feet and then let it go. Apeiron will turn on its rocket engine and climb towards space. Passengers will feel no weight for a short time. The spaceship will return without going all the way around Earth and land on a runway.
The company wants each spaceship of this new type to make up to eight flights a month. Separate parts should make building and repair work easier. However, tests still need to show that it can fly this often. Engineers will check Apeiron’s flight software before flight tests begin.
