It traverses oxygen-starved, earthquake-prone terrain that for most of the way is over 4, 000 metres (13, 120 feet) above sea level and rises to 5, 072 metres not far off the altitude of Mount Everest's base camp.
Paragliding is another popular way to enjoy the mountains, as the glacial peaks offer high altitude jumping off points with strong winds, giving pilots plenty of air time to enjoy the view of patchwork valleys below.
The satellite - which had been intended to study the effects of climate change - should have separated from the rocket and deployed its solar panels some nine minutes after take-off, at an altitude of 302km.
Workers operate machinery from inside pressurized cabins or inhale from oxygen canisters to stave off the worst effects of altitude sickness.
The report found no definite reason why the helicopter had flown up the valley at low altitude after "abruptly breaking off what appeared to be a normal approach to land at Rochester airport".
It begins with a fairly rapid ascent to gain as much altitude as possible immediately after take off.
First, the ducted fan design allows the car to achieve the speed and maneuverability of a helicopter -- 155 mph, 12, 000-foot altitude, two hours of flight time, vertical take off and landing -- but removes the dangers of exposed rotors, allowing the "car" to sidle up to buildings for rescue missions, or coexist in close quarters with other vehicles.
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Once at altitude, Bill noticed a Northwest Airlines DC-9 a few miles off our left wing.
Those two brief stretches of time when all electronic devices must be turned off -- after the doors to the plane close until it is at cruising altitude, and then again on approach for landing -- are being questioned.
It took off slung beneath the WhiteKnightTwo aircraft, which does the job of lifting the rocket plane to its launch altitude - some 45, 000ft (14km).
The company's Pegasus XL rocket was flown to a launch altitude of about 39, 000 feet by a specially configured L-1011 "Stargazer" jetliner taking off from the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands in the Pacific, near the equator about halfway between Hawaii and Australia.
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