III 108th CONGRESS 2d Session S. RES. 458 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES October 10, 2004 Mr. Bingaman (for himself, Mr. McCain, Mr. Hollings, Mr. Brownback, Mr. Inhofe, and Mr. Domenici) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to RESOLUTION Congratulating the SpaceShipOne team for achieving a historic milestone in human space flight.

Whereas the Ansari X Prize was established with private capital to jumpstart the space tourism industry, inspire and educate students, focus public attention and investment capital on this new business frontier, and challenge explorers and rocket scientists around the world; Whereas the $10,000,000 Ansari X Prize was modeled after the $25,000 Orteig Prize won by trans-Atlantic aviator Charles Lindbergh in 1927; Whereas on October 4, 2004, SpaceShipOne, designed by Burt Rutan and flown first by Mike Melvill and later by Brian Binnie, won the Ansari X Prize by being the first privately funded space vehicle to depart from and safely return to Earth twice within 2 weeks; Whereas SpaceShipOne broke the previous record for maximum altitude achieved by a plane, which was set by the X-15 in 1963; Whereas the SpaceShipOne flights represent a historic accomplishment for humanity; and Whereas future achievements in commercial space flight will be stimulated by an ongoing annual competition for an X Prize Cup, beginning in 2006 at White Sands Missile Range outside Las Cruces, New Mexico: Now, therefore be it

That the Senate— (1)congratulates the SpaceShipOne team led by Bert Rutan, and test pilots Mike Melvill and Brian Binnie, for their historic achievement in human space flight; (2)recognizes the contributions of all members and supporters of the X Prize Foundation and the SpaceShipOne team, the efforts of which were instrumental in this accomplishment; and (3)encourages the continuation of efforts towards practical commercial space flight through future X Prize Cup and other competitions.