The first orbital space launch from the UK suffered its latest failure just minutes before the mission’s success.
Following the successful launch and launch of the rocket, Virgin Orbit reported at 23:46 that there was “an anomaly preventing us from reaching orbit”.
“We are evaluating the information,” Mission Control added. “We will share more information when we can.”
Although there was no confirmation, it was believed that all nine satellites on board were lost.
Cosmic Girl’s planned honor lap was canceled just after midnight after landing, and the crowd that had stayed behind to cheer her return failed to see the giant close-up.
It was a disappointing end to a perfect start.
At this historic moment, Virgin’s Cosmic Girl program kicked off in Cornwall to the applause of over 2,000 people enjoying the festive atmosphere.
Cosmic Girl swept past crowds of spectators lucky enough to catch a ticket, while thousands of locals parked along the roads surrounding Newquay Cornwall Airport to catch a glimpse of a converted Boeing 747 taking off into the Atlantic.
There used to be a festival vibe at the launch. Felix Gatfield, 14, who has had a YouTube channel about space since he was 12, skipped four mock exams to pass it.
He was allowed to stay up after his usual bedtime of around 9 p.m. to watch the Boeing 747 take off from Cornwall Spaceport and planned to overtake the car on his way home.
A student from Reading who is studying engineering and wants to work in the aerospace industry will also be involved in the planned space launches in Scotland.
Felix, who interviews astronauts and shares videos of rocket launches on his YouTube page with nearly 2,000 followers, said: “This is the first launch I have personally seen.
“This is the first launch I have personally seen. It’s amazing to be so close to the action, only three and a half hours away. [from my home]”.
A playlist of Elton John’s “Rocketman”, David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” and “Walking on the Moon” was shown at a quiet disco on the podium before the police took off.
The market stall was busy selling merchandise including T-shirts for £22 while Victoria Orbit India Pale Ale and locally produced lager sold well at £1.50 a can.
One of the revelers was Adrian Grint, a 46-year-old IT consultant from St. Austell, although it was not certain that St. Austell was on planet Earth, as he was a green alien holding a sign that said “Bring me home.” “.
“I’m coming in for test flights, I’m really in space and all that… it’s fantastic for Cornwall, I love it.”
Ellie, 12, and Lily Thomas, 10, arrived at the airport from Penzance with their mother Nadine and partner Alan Booker. You took first place, as close to the runway as possible.
“I’m so excited,” Ellie said.
Also, Simon and Sam Newland, who live near St. Austell, built their space as close to Cosmic Girl as possible. They brought with them 4-year-old son Dominic and 2-year-old daughter Amber.
“We are here for the kids… You can only see the first space launch from the UK once. It’s history and they can say they’re here.”
One notable absentee was Virgin founder Sir Richard Branson. He watched the launch from his home on Necker Island.
While a crowd of spectators waited for takeoff, the plane stood on the runway with a LauncherOne rocket under one of the wings carrying nine small satellites.
The launch was rescheduled to allow for the best possible launch window, in which the missile would be fired from an aircraft about an hour after launch over the sea off the coast of Ireland.
When the plane returns to the spaceport, the rocket will start the engine and put into orbit small satellites for various civilian and military purposes – the first satellites launched from Europe.
Confirmation of whether the mission is successful or not should come around midnight when all nine satellites are deployed.
Observed from the Gunhilly ground station in Cornwall, a team on the ground is now monitoring data from the rocket.
Matthew Cosby, the station’s chief technical officer, called it “a very historic moment for the UK and for Gunhilly”.
He added: “We are receiving telemetry and monitoring the status of the missile. Temperatures, accelerations, heading positions – everything so that the mission can determine the safety and serviceability of the rocket.
British astronaut Major Tim Peake said the launch was “a landmark moment for the UK aerospace industry” and “demonstrates the great strides our country is making to compete on a global scale”.
“I hope this is the start of many successful projects that will inspire a new generation of people to enter this exciting industry,” he added.
Matthew Archer, director of commercial space for the UK space agency, said: “There was a space race at the time because we wanted to beat Norway and Sweden in Europe’s first space rocket launch.
“The need for speed meant we would launch as soon as we were ready. With winter weather, we will show that if we can do it in January, we can do it any time of the year.”
Mr Archer added that the launch could “pave the way for space tourism from Cornwall” over the next decade.
He said: “Cornwall already has a hospitality and tourism industry and if space tourism becomes more sustainable and cheaper, this could encourage off-season tourism as people want to visit space all year round.”
When asked how excited she was about ten, Cornwall launch site manager Melissa Thorpe said: “One hundred. A thousand out of ten.”
After the start, he said: “It was incredible. I’m absolutely thrilled. It was just huge.”
Ian Annette, Deputy Director General of the UK space agency, said: “Tears came to my eyes when I saw so many people supporting this. Tickets sold out faster than Glastonbury.”
As Virgin Orbit hopes for another launch from Cornwall this year, Ms Thorpe also hopes to provide more space in the southwest.
Speaking about the potential of Cornish manned spaceflight, including space tourism, Ms Thorp said: “Of course there is Virgin Galactic and we are in talks with them.
“We are also considering a lot of future technologies, including point-to-point travel. Where we can use space to get to the other side of the world.
“With space tourism, the government has to deal with the rules and policies behind it. I’d say it’s a bit of a stretch, but this point-to-point journey is definitely the Virgin Group’s goal.
“You know, aviation hasn’t developed much since the 1950s. So how can you make air travel more efficient? The answer lies in using the curvature of the earth, and we like it, as long as we can begin to understand the effect on the upper atmosphere.
“I hope that in ten years we will have space tourism. Definitely in the lives of my children, I hope this happens more often.
“On the commercial side, we are working with Sierra and their Dream Chaser, which is like a shuttle and takes off vertically to go to the International Space Station, pick up experiments or people and bring them back and land here.
“They will debut in the US this year and then hopefully they will be here by 2024 or 2025.”
Company secretary Grant Shapps said seven spaceports are expected to open in the UK over the next few years, with a vertical launch from Scotland next year:
Mr Shapps said: “When I came to Newquay last year, some people told me, is this really going to happen? And the answer we showed tonight is yes.
“There are many things that could have stopped him. But tonight we were the first country to start on European soil. Today all eyes are on Britain.”
Shapps added that the small satellite sector would be worth about $15 billion worldwide and the UK could capture about 30 percent of the market.
Science Minister George Freeman said: “This is truly a historic moment as the UK became the first country to launch satellites from Europe. Put the UK at the forefront of the commercial space race in Europe.
“Tonight marks the beginning of a new era of British space travel that will inspire a new generation of space scientists and innovators and lay the foundations for technological leadership, as the Apollo mission did for the United States in the 1960s.”
Source: I News
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