Entrepreneurial Space Developments

This was a big week for developments in the emerging commercial space industry:

- XCOR went public with the announcement of its Lynx suborbital spaceplane. The vehicle's applications could include space tourism, scientific research and helping to address the military's need for 'operationally responsive' access to space.

- A commercial agreement was announced for flying a portion of a deceased persons ashes to the lunar surface, in an expansion of an existing service that takes human ashes into space.

The Space Access 2008 conference is taking place in Phoenix, Arizona. Henry Cate has posted his first report here. Note that his final paragraph links to several other bloggers covering this conference, which brings together the leaders in the emerging entrepreneurial space industry.