»Space Ship One reaches space... the end of NASA?«

Marking an era in private suborbital spaceflight that some hope will open the final frontier to regular tourists.

"It may take many decades," said California millionaire Dennis Tito, who became the first paying space passenger in 2001 when he took an orbital flight on a Russian spacecraft to the international space station. "It may take 50 to 100 years. But it's going to lead to a new industry."

Melvill's flight has turned him into the new star on the space scene, and he was being courted by late-night and morning news TV shows. He showed off a lucky horseshoe that he had pinned to his flight suit, a gift he made for his wife while he was courting her, more than four decades ago.