spacetoday.net: New Mexico to host X Prize Cup

Posted: Wed, May 12, 2004, 8:41 AM ET (1241 GMT)
X Prize

The X Prize Foundation has selected New Mexico to host a competition featuring suborbital RLVs. The inaugural X Prize Cup will take place at the White Sands Missile Range in southern New Mexico in 2005 while the state develops a nearby commercial spaceport, the Southwest Regional Spaceport, that will host the competition in future years. The X Prize Cup will feature vehicles currently competing for the Ansari X Prize, as well as other suborbital RLVs. The initial competition will likely be an exhibition, while future X Prize Cups will be competitions with teams competing in various categories such as highest altitude and fastest turnaround time. New Mexico beat out Florida to host the cup; Oklahoma and California had also expressed an interest in the competition. The state will spend $9 million to host the competition, primarily on spaceport infrastructure.