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Remember when the thought of taking a commercial trip to space was a pipe dream, or maybe just a super cool thing that could only happen in a sci-fi movie? Well, those days are numbered now because Spaceport America will offer paying customers just that in the near future via Virgin Galactic. In James Gray‘s Ad Astra, Major Roy McBride (Brad Pitt) sets out on a dangerous mission across the solar system to figure out what happened to his long lost father (Tommy Lee Jones) and his doomed mission, but it all starts with some casual space travel that could wind up being a reality fairly soon. McBride kicks off his trip with a commercial flight to the moon, ultimately arriving on a moon-based facility that looks a whole lot like a traditional airport, fast food and all.
In celebration of Ad Astra‘s December 3rd digital release and its December 17th 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD release, Collider got the opportunity to visit Spaceport America in Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. Not only did we get to explore the budding facility, but they also had one of the screen-used moon rovers from Ad Astra on hand to take a spin in. And, speaking of spinning, we also got the chance to give the facility’s G-Shock Machine a go and see how we fared while experiencing increased gravitational forces. The visit also included an extended interview with NASA engineer and Ad Astra technical consultant Robert Yowell, as well as a press conference that also included the CEO of Spaceport America, Daniel Hicks, as well as former astronaut Leland Melvin, and Ellen Ochoa who was the first hispanic woman to go to space.
It was quite the experience to watch Ad Astra tap into the possibilities of commercial space travel in the not too distant future and then to actually get a taste of the reality of it at Spaceport America. If you want to catch a glimpse of what’s brewing over at Virgin Galactic, check out the video of our visit to the facility in the player at the top of this article. And if you’re looking for more information on the additional content available on the Ad Astra Blu-ray and 4K, we’ve got a full list of special features for you right here.
