Got a hankering to gaze down on planet Earth and an extra $200,000 to spare? More than 300 people have already put down deposits or paid that full ticket price for a ride aboard Richard Branson’s Virgin Space Ship Enterprise – also known as SpaceShipTwo – on the billionaire thrill-seeker’s Virgin Galactic line. CNET has a great explanation of how the commercial space travel craft would work, as well as coverage of today’s unveiling:

“SpaceShipTwo will be released at an altitude of 50,000 feet. A hybrid rocket motor burning solid propellant with nitrous oxide then will boost SpaceShipTwo onto a steep trajectory to an altitude of more than 62 miles.

The roomy cabin of SpaceShipTwo, about the same size as a large executive jet, features multiple portholes to give its passengers a spectacular view of Earth and space.

After about five minutes of weightlessness as the spaceplane arcs through the top of its ballistic trajectory, the rocket plane will fall back into the atmosphere, pivoting its wings upward in a ‘feathering’ technique invented by Rutan to increase drag and ease the stress or re-entry. From there, the spacecraft will glide to a normal runway landing.”

So what makes Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo more than just a high-flying plane? Scientific American tackles that question here.

And if you want to book a seat? Go to Virgin Galactic’s website here.

(Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)