See the SpaceShipTwo During a Drop Test - Video

This video released by officials at Virgin Galactic shows the SpaceShipTwo being dropped from its WhiteKnightTwo aircraft carrier for a critical drop test. This is the method through which the spacecraft will separate from its carrier, before it ignites its engines and flies to the edge of space.

SpaceShipTwo is the world's first commercial suborbital spacecraft. It will be able to carry 2 pilots and 6 paying passengers to the edge of space – about 110 kilometers (68 miles) above the planet's surface – at a cost of about $200,000 (€144,500) per ticket.

When the craft will start actual flights, the separation from the WhiteKnightTwo will be followed by the ignition of a rocket that will boost it to suborbital altitudes. However, the drop test documented here was conducted so that Virgin could analyze the feathered configuration of the vehicle's wings.

The wings change shape in order to ensure that the spacecraft can break when reentering Earth's atmosphere. Thus far, all tests Virgin Galactic conducted are within established parameters.