It was supposed to be a historic launch, the start of a new era for the space industry. But the first attempt to launch a rocket from Britain failed: Virgin Orbit reported an “anomaly” that prevented its rocket from reaching orbit.
It was the sixth launch for Virgin Orbit, but the previous 5 had taken off from California. This would have been the first orbital launch outside the United States, the first since United Kingdom. The mission – which does not include a traditional launch pad, but the use of a Jumbo aircraft, a modified Boeing 747 carrying very small light satellites – took off from Newquay, in Cornwall. The company, owned by the eccentric British billionaire Richard Branson, had planned to deploy nine satellites into Earth orbit. Satellites – supplied in part by innovative Scottish and Welsh industries – designed for civil and military use with applications ranging from ocean monitoring to satellite navigation technologies.
Branson founded both the Virgin Galactic and Virgin Orbit: the first is reserved for tourists. And he was among the passengers of the historic first flight in 2021 which launched the new era of space tourism by beating Jeff Bezosowner of Amazon e Blue Origin.
While waiting to understand what caused the launch to fail and if any fragments will fall into the ocean, Virgin Orbit’s shares have plummeted: down by more than 30%.