No X-Prize for you!

A rocket belonging to a team taking a low-budget stab at the $10m (£5.7m) Ansari X-prize has exploded less than 1,000 feet into the air.

Nobody was hurt in the test which took place on Sunday just south of Olympic National Park in Washington State, US.

Tell that to the dummies.

Rubicon 1, which is seven metres (23 feet) long and 96cm (38 inches) in diameter, held three dummies simulating the weight of astronauts.

I wonder if they added in the extra weight to simulate the astronauts crapping themselves?

It was hoped Rubicon 1 would reach 6,000m and supersonic speeds.

Talk about not reaching your goals.

The rocket, which crashed about 60 metres (200 feet) from lift-off after its parachute failed to deploy, will have to be completely rebuilt, said Eric Meier, co-founder of Space Transport Corporation - the team behind the attempt.

Really? Next time, just drop it from a crane. It will cost less and you'll still have to rebuild it.

Investment call

"We need to raise some more money...fix our problems and launch another low-altitude flight as soon as possible," Meier told the Associated Press.

"We also probably need to hire some people who've done more model rockets than we have. I really thought I had Rocket Simulator 1998 nailed, but I guess I should have sprung for the extra add ons. Oh, and we need 3 more dummies."

"It's a learning experience to be expected when you're developing a vehicle with [these kinds] of capabilities."

Capabilities? You mean blowing up at 1000 feet? Heck, I've got bottle rockets that do the same thing and you can get those for $20 a gross!

X-prize competitor SpaceShipOne, built by aviation pioneer Burt Rutan, became the first privately-funded manned spacecraft to reach space when it flew to 100.12km (328,491ft) on 21 June.

For those of you not good at math, that's 327,491 feet more than Rubicon 1.

Another 25 teams across the world are competing for the prize, which awards the first team to send a three-person craft over 100km (62 miles), and repeat the feat in the same craft within two weeks.

And most of those teams will be sleeping extra well tonight.

Rubicon 1 cost $20,000 (£10,800) to build, but Mr Meier said he hoped the relatively low cost of the spacecraft would make raising the money to build another rocket a little easier.

For $218 you could get one of these instead! A lot cheaper and will probably go much further than 200 feet!

The partners of Space Transport Corporation have invested about $100,000 (£54,000) of their own funds in the company.

Heck, the Government would have spent hundreds of millions to blow something up like that! Talk about efficiency!

Ok, ok, big disclaimer - I didn't originally link to this article to mock it, I couldn't help myself. But Space Transport Co. should really be given a pat on the back (if not a long hug) for their attempt. If it wasn't for companies like this, we'd never get our space program off the Government teat. I hope the boys and gals over there don't mind a little lighthearted chuckle at what must have been a very, very disappointing day.

Better luck next time and God bless!

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