--- title: Virgin Galactic and Orbital Sciences Antares Crashes Raise Questions description: “Space is hard. And today was a tough day" canonical: https://time.com/3552499/virgin-galactic-crash-orbital-sciences-antares/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-11-01T15:38:37.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:03:34.767Z article:section: Science og:title: Virgin Galactic and Orbital Sciences Antares Crashes Raise Questions og:description: “Space is hard. And today was a tough day" og:url: https://time.com/3552499/virgin-galactic-crash-orbital-sciences-antares/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf958b43de32600ba/698763d0cd68485be4097709/ap685542182387.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2436 og:image:height: 1370 og:image:alt: SpaceShipTwo og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Virgin Galactic and Orbital Sciences Antares Crashes Raise Questions twitter:description: “Space is hard. And today was a tough day" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf958b43de32600ba/698763d0cd68485be4097709/ap685542182387.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Private Space Industry Faces Questions After 2 Crashes > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Future Proof: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Future Proof is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Making sense of the climate and energy economy. Future Proof examines the forces transforming energy and climate, and what those changes mean for business, technology, policy and the global economy. Senior correspondent Justin Worland goes beyond traditional climate coverage to connect the energy transition to the bigger decisions reshaping companies, markets and society. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-futureproof-2026q3/newsletters?i=ff367872-4763-4ac2-8dff-d8c74aaf61ef&cr=time-nl-futureproof-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Friday (1x per week) | TIME, August 2026 | | Subscribers | 40,000 | TIME, August 2026 | | Open rate | 34.2% | TIME, August 2026 | | Click rate | 2.1% | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Justin Worland, Senior Correspondent | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership Senior leaders shaping the climate transition. An engaged audience of executives and decision-makers spanning operating companies, finance, policy, consulting, communications and media. ### TIME Future Proof: key statements * Future Proof is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * Future Proof is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-futureproof-2026q3/newsletters?i=ff367872-4763-4ac2-8dff-d8c74aaf61ef&cr=time-nl-futureproof-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-futureproof-2026q3/subscribe?i=ff367872-4763-4ac2-8dff-d8c74aaf61ef&cr=time-nl-futureproof-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is TIME's climate and energy newsletter? Future Proof is TIME's weekly climate and energy newsletter, written by senior correspondent Justin Worland. It connects the energy transition to the decisions reshaping business, technology, policy and markets. It reaches 40,000 subscribers with a 34.2% open rate and a 2.1% click rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I follow the energy transition as a business story? Future Proof covers climate and energy as an economic and business story rather than only an environmental one. It publishes every Friday and is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who writes Future Proof? Justin Worland, a senior correspondent at TIME and an award-winning climate journalist, writes Future Proof. #### Is Future Proof free? Yes. Future Proof is free at time.com/newsletters. by [Fortune / Benjamin Snyder and John Kell](https://time.com/author/fortune/) ## Fortune / Benjamin Snyder and John Kell Fortune Nov 1, 2014 3:38 PM UTC  This image from video by KABC-TV Los Angeles shows wreckage of SpaceShipTwo in Southern California's Mojave Desert on Oct. 31, 2014\. A Virgin Galactic space tourism rocket exploded after taking off on a test flight, a witness said. This image from video by KABC-TV Los Angeles shows wreckage of SpaceShipTwo in Southern California's Mojave Desert on Oct. 31, 2014\. A Virgin Galactic space tourism rocket exploded after taking off on a test flight, a witness said. KABC-TV/AP by [Fortune / Benjamin Snyder and John Kell](https://time.com/author/fortune/) ## Fortune / Benjamin Snyder and John Kell Fortune Nov 1, 2014 3:38 PM UTC It’s been a rough week for the private space industry. On Friday, Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShip Two [crashed during a flight test](http://fortune.com/2014/10/31/virgin-galactic-spaceship-spaceshiptwo-crashes-during-flight-test/) in the Mojave Desert, killing one and seriously injuring another. On Tuesday, an unmanned Orbital Sciences Antares rocket exploded six seconds after lift-off in Virginia. The back-to-back accidents raise inevitable questions about the safety and reliability of the emerging private space industry. Will space tourists and companies that want to put cargo into orbit take the risk? “Gut reaction, this is a major setback,” said James Pura, president of Space Frontier Foundation, a non-profit that advocates more space exploration. “A lot of our hopes and dreams in the private commercial space industry lie in the success of the leading companies, and Virgin Galactic is one of those.” The private space industry is receiving a huge influx of investment and attention. Elon Musk’s Space X, for example, has a number of contracts to deliver satellites and cargo into space. Another company, Planetary Sciences, backed by billionaires like Google’s Larry Page and Eric Schmidt, plans to mine asteroids. Meanwhile, Blue Origin, founded by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, got started in 2010 as a space tourism business, but has since detoured into making rocket engines. Virgin Galactic, the space tourism start-up founded by Virgin mogul Richard Branson, had plans to take its first commercial trip 62 miles into the stratosphere by the end of the year. Over 700 customers have paid $250,000 to take a trip. But it may be difficult to meet that goal after today’s accident, in which a test flight experienced what the company described as an “in-flight anomaly” that sent the craft hurtling to the ground. At least one of the test pilots escaped by parachute. “Space is hard. And today was a tough day,” Virgin Galactic CEO George Whitesides said. Earlier in the week, Orbital Sciences, a company that carries customer payloads into space, suffered a huge setback when its launch went haywire. A rocket it launched in Virginia had to be destroyed just seconds after taking off. Shares in Orbital Sciences [ ORB ](http://fortune.com/company/orb/) [plummeted](http://fortune.com/2014/10/28/orbital-science-shares-crashing-after-rocket-explosion/) over 16% after the failure. “It is far too early to know the details of what happened,” Frank Culbertson, Orbital’s executive vice president and general manager of its advanced programs group, said in a [statement](http://www.orbital.com/NewsInfo/release.asp?prid=1918). “As we begin to gather information, our primary concern lies with the ongoing safety and security of those involved in our response and recovery operations. “From a financial standpoint it will take some time to assess the precise impacts; however, I can tell you that Orbital’s view for 2014 remains unchanged,” Garrett Pierce, Orbital Sciences’ vice chairman and CFO, said on a [conference call](https://time.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/orb-transcript-2014-10-29t17%5F00.pdf) with analysts and investors. Of course, private space companies aren’t the only to suffer setbacks. NASA has had its own high-profile mishaps over the years, including two Space Shuttle accidents. Whether governmental efforts are any more risky than private launches is unclear. But one thing is certain. “Space flight is inherently risky and we as humans are curious about space and always will be,” Pura, the foundation president, said. “Those brave pioneers are turning science fiction into reality. Our heart goes out to those brave pioneers at this time.” [_This article originally appeared on Fortune.com_](http://fortune.com/2014/10/31/after-two-crashes-private-space-industry-faces-inevitable-questions/) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3552499/virgin-galactic-crash-orbital-sciences-antares/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3552499/virgin-galactic-crash-orbital-sciences-antares/"},"headline":"Private Space Industry Faces Questions After 2 Crashes","datePublished":"2014-11-01T15:38:37.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:03:34.767Z","description":"“Space is hard. And today was a tough day\"","url":"https://time.com/3552499/virgin-galactic-crash-orbital-sciences-antares/","keywords":["Space","Tech"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf958b43de32600ba/698763d0cd68485be4097709/ap685542182387.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Fortune / Benjamin Snyder and John Kell"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf958b43de32600ba/698763d0cd68485be4097709/ap685542182387.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"SpaceShipTwo","caption":"SpaceShipTwo","creditText":"KABC-TV/AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/science/","name":"Science"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/space/","name":"Space"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3552499/virgin-galactic-crash-orbital-sciences-antares/","name":"Private Space Industry Faces Questions After 2 Crashes"}}]}] ```