Two Antigua and Barbuda women, mother and daughter, have flown into space as part of Virgin Galatic's first truly commercial flight. This opportunity to travel into space made them the first Caribbean duo to undertake such a mission.
Schahaff, 46, and her daughter, 18, won their place on the crew by being selected in a lottery. Schahaff is a health coach and her daughter is a student at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland.
Other records set by both women include being the first Caribbean woman to become an astronaut and the youngest person to have ever traveled into space.
On August 10, they boarded the Galactic 02 spacecraft from Spaceport America, New Mexico.
The tweet reads, " INTERNATIONAL I MOTHER AND DAUGHTER WILL GO TO SPACE. Keisha Schahaff and her daughter, Anastatia Mayers, from Antigua and Barbuda will go into space with Jon Goodwin from the UK, on a new commercial mission from Virgin Galactic. The woman and her daughter won the ticket from a raffle organized by the company of billionaire Richard Branson, while Goodwin was an Olympian who has suffered from Parkinson's for years. According to Virgin Galactic, as of today, less than 700 people in the world have been able to go to space.
The event had great connotation in Antigua and Barbuda, so that parties and an evening to accompany the launching of the spacecraft took place. The Prime Minister spoke during the live broadcast of the flight.
CEO of the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority, Colin C. James, acknowledged that the event will serve as an inspiration to all who wish to travel to space and a reminder to the people of his country that Antigua and Barbuda has broken barriers.
"We are excited to witness this moment and extend an open invitation to all to join us in the viewing partes," he added.
Preceding the flight, the escort or watch party was based in Antigua at Recreation Ground and in Barbuda, at Holy Trinity Primary School. Invited were Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne; Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Galactic; and Christopher Huie, a Jamaican-American who earlier this year became the 19th black astronaut.
Another interesting detail of the flight of this Galatic 2 is that there was a majority of female representation in the cockpit. Virgin Galactic astronaut instructor Beth Moses and VSS Unity pilot Kelly Latimer participated in the flight.
The spacecraft took off quickly, reaching an altitude of 85 kilometers in just two minutes, and remained in a vertical position for more than three minutes, at which time the passengers were able to enjoy the magnificent spectacle.
Only one passenger paid for the flight, Jon Goodwin, a former Olympic athlete who paid $250,000 to be part of the crew. Goodwin, 80 years old and suffering from Parkinson's disease, managed to be accepted and participate smoothly in the space flight.