Virgin Galactic's supersonic plane reaches space

Virgin Galactic's tourism space shuttle SpaceShipTwo on Thursday flew more than 50 miles above the earth's surface, reaching a height considered by the U.S. Air Force and other government agencies to be the boundary of space.

The two pilots on board Virgin Galactic's spacecraft Unity became the company's first astronauts. Virgin Group founder Richard Branson was on hand to watch the historic moment.

"Many of you will know how important the dream of space travel is to me personally. Ever since I watched the moon landings as a child I have looked up to the skies with wonder," Branson said after the flight. "This is a momentous day and I could not be more proud of our teams who together have opened a new chapter of space exploration."

The Thursday flight could pave the way for the company to begin flying their commercial customers to suborbital space sometime in the relatively near future, a huge boon for the company that has faced its fair share of setbacks on the road to spaceflight.

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