UK-launched rocket reaches space but ‘anomaly’ prevents satellite deployment

Codenamed ‘Start Me Up’, this first UK mission for Virgin Orbit followed four completed missions on the west coast of the US, where the company is based. The long-awaited launch from Spaceport Cornwall marked not only the first from the UK, but also the first commercial launch from anywhere in western Europe.

Virgin Orbit’s launch system consisted of a modified Boeing 747-400 named Cosmic Girl, fitted with a rocket dubbed LauncherOne under its port wing. After taking off, Cosmic Girl followed a flight path out over the sea, successfully air-launching the rocket containing its payload of satellites.

The rocket then ignited its engines, quickly going hypersonic and successfully reaching space. According to Virgin Orbit, the flight then continued through successful stage separation and ignition of the second stage. At some point during the firing of the rocket’s second stage engine and with the rocket travelling over 11,000mph, the system experienced an anomaly and the mission ended prematurely. The company added that out of five LauncherOne missions carrying payloads for private companies and governmental agencies, this is the first to fall short of delivering its payloads to their precise target orbit.

“The first-time nature of this mission added layers of complexity that our team professionally managed through; however, in the end a technical failure appears to have prevented us from delivering the final orbit,” said Dan Hart, Virgin Orbit CEO. “We will work tirelessly to understand the nature of the failure, make corrective actions, and return to orbit as soon as we have completed a full investigation and mission assurance process.”

The payload carried by LauncherOne was a mix of government and commercial satellites, with a total of seven customers on board.

Optimism

Despite the setback late last night (January 9, 2023), horizontal space launches from Cornwall and vertical launch capabilities in development in Scotland present a compelling option for companies and organisations intent on operating satellites.

According to Paul Adams, director and aerospace and defence sector specialist at management consultancy Vendigital, the demand for launch capacity and the ability to put payloads into space has grown significantly over the past decade.

“This has been driven both by the requirement for services satellites can provide but also by a major reduction in the cost of launch,” he said. “For example, NASA’s space shuttles, which were retired in 2011, cost an average of $1.6bn per flight, or nearly $30,000 per pound of payload - in 2021 dollars - to reach low-Earth orbit. SpaceX offers rides aboard its medium-lift Falcon 9 rocket for which the company typically charges around $62m per launch, or around $1,200 per pound of payload to reach low-Earth orbit.” 

He continued: “At present most of the global launch capacity is controlled by Russia and the US. In recent years other nations have looked to enter the launch market. The UK Space sector is worth £16.5bn annually to the UK economy and most of this is driven by satellite manufacture. Having a domestic capability to launch is a strategically important development for the UK for it to remain a key part of the global space sector.”