Sir Richard Branson‘s space firm Virgin Orbit has revealed its plans for its first UK launch this summer – from Cornwall.
In a ‘historic moment for UK space’, Virgin Orbit has signed a deal with Cardiff-based company Space Forge to launch the latter’s satellite into orbit.
The satellite will be blasted into space on a rocket called LauncherOne, which will be unleashed from a jumbo jet from Spaceport Cornwall, part of Newquay Airport.
Over the last 14 months, LauncherOne has already deployed payloads in space for Virgin Orbit’s customers, including NASA and the US Department of Defense.
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Virgin Orbit has announced an agreement with tech start-up Space Forge to launch the first satellite developed in Wales into space in summer 2022. It will be the first launch from UK soil with Virgin Orbit
Virgin Orbit launches involve the firm’s carrier aircraft, a modified Boeing 747 called Cosmic Girl (pictured), and a two-stage orbital launch vehicle called LauncherOne, tucked into Cosmic Girl’s belly
Over the last 14 months, LauncherOne has already deployed payloads in space for Virgin Orbit’s customers, including NASA and the US Department of Defense
From left, Virgin Orbit CEO Dan Hart, Space Forge CEO Joshua Western and CTO Andrew Bacon sign launch agreement in Long Beach, California
‘We at Virgin Orbit are delighted to have been chosen to move Space Forge forward in their space journey as we look forward to our inaugural Cornwall launch,’ said Virgin Orbit CEO Dan Hart.
‘Space Forge is joining the growing community of space innovators advancing space technologies for the betterment of our world.
‘Their commitment to sustainability builds a foundation for future growth in the industry that we at Virgin Orbit are proud to be part of.’
It’s unclear exactly when the Cornwall flight will occur; MailOnline has contacted Virgin Orbit for more information.
Virgin Orbit has already conducted three successful consecutive orbital missions with LauncherOne in 2021 and 2022, the last one in January. All three took place from Mojave Air and Space Port, California.
The maiden LauncherOne flight back in 2020, meanwhile, failed to reach space, due to an ‘anomaly’ due to a premature shutdown of the first stage engine.
Virgin Orbit is a company within the Virgin Group, the conglomerate founded by Richard Branson in 1970. Virgin Orbit was formed in 2017 to develop the air-launched LauncherOne rocket, launched from Cosmic Girl (this had previously been a project of Virgin Galactic)
Virgin Orbit’s carrier plane, known as Cosmic Girl, took off Wednesday with the LauncherOne rocket tightly secured under its left wing in the firm’s first operational mission
Virgin Orbit has already conducted three successful consecutive orbital missions in 2021 and 2022, the last one in January. Pictured is the modified Boeing 747, Cosmic Girl
Virgin Orbit’s launches involve Virgin Orbit’s carrier aircraft, a modified Boeing 747 called Cosmic Girl, and LauncherOne, a two-stage orbital launch vehicle, tucked into Cosmic Girl’s belly.
Once Cosmic Girl is at a high enough altitude – around 30,000 feet – LauncherOne is unleashed. When at an orbital altitude, LauncherOne deploys satellites in space.
With the upcoming launch, LauncherOne will deploy Space Forge’s satellite ForgeStar, which it refers to as a ‘space factory’.
ForgeStar is a reusable, suitcase-sized vehicle capable of being in low Earth orbit (LEO) for up to six months before returning to Earth.
It will be used as a testing ground for research projects in microgravity, in areas such as medicine and advanced industrial applications.
It will allow Space Forge to ‘leverage the benefits of the space environment’, namely microgravity, vacuum and temperature, to create products ‘that are impossible to manufacture on Earth’.
It’s unclear exactly when the Cornwall flight will occur; MailOnline has contacted Virgin Orbit for more information
‘We’re thrilled to be making UK history with our first launch,’ said Joshua Western, CEO of Space Forge.
‘We will demonstrate the use of space for good through in-space manufacturing and reliable return and it’s brilliant that both Virgin Orbit and Spaceport Cornwall share our ambitions.
‘This is the start of a great collaboration and we are so excited to see where it goes.’
January’s LauncherOne flight successfully launched seven satellites for customers including the US Department of Defense and British firm Spire.
Virgin Orbit also still has several LauncherOne flights planned from California in 2022, including one in the first quarter of the year carrying payloads for the US Space Force.
