Half an hour later, the party was over. “We appear to have an anomaly that has prevented us from reaching orbit. We are evaluating the information,” Virgin Orbit tweeted last night (9 January).
It is not yet clear what caused the failure, and the loss of satellites over the Atlantic. The rocket had ignited its engines, quickly going hypersonic and successfully reaching space. The flight then continued through successful stage separation and ignition of the second stage.
“However, at some point during the firing of the rocket’s second stage engine and with the rocket travelling at a speed of more than 11,000 miles per hour (17,700km/h), the system experienced an anomaly, ending the mission prematurely,” a Virgin Orbit statement said.
The company will work with the UK Space Agency (UKSA) to investigate what caused the anomaly. In the meantime, however, what is next for the UK space sector? The good news is that last night’s setback should just be a blip on an otherwise upwards trajectory.
More Virgin Orbit missions
Despite last night’s disappointment, we might not have to wait too long for the next Virgin Orbit launch from Spaceport Cornwall. Several factors point in this direction: Virgin Orbit has launched five LauncherOne missions, with last night’s the only failure; the Civil Aviation Authority has already issued the company launch operator and range control licences once; there is no shortage of satellites needing launches; and the launch partners are determined to go again.
“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,” said Dan Hart, Virgin Orbit CEO.
Further launches from the UK are expected “within a year”, said UKSA deputy chief executive Ian Annett, according to The Guardian.
Orbex eyes Scottish launches
The UKSA remains committed to becoming “the leading provider of commercial small satellite launch in Europe by 2030, with vertical launches planned from Scotland,” said Matt Archer, director of commercial spaceflight, after the mission failure.
Rocket manufacturer Orbex, based in Forres, Moray, hopes to be one of the main launch providers from Scotland. The firm will build and operate the first vertical launch site on the A’ Mhoine peninsula in north-west Sutherland, and it has already revealed a full-scale prototype of its Prime orbital rocket, powered by seven 3D-printed engines, and a launch pad for ‘dress rehearsal’ launches.
The company has previously said that it intends to begin launches in 2023. For many people, vertical launches from UK soil could be a much more significant capability and symbol of the nation’s ambitions in space.
Chris Larmour, Orbex CEO, said: “Space is never easy, so we were sorry to learn that Virgin Orbit's first horizontal orbital space launch from the UK did not go as planned. We know how much time, effort and energy must have been invested to deliver that launch attempt, and we wish them well for their next mission.
“The Orbex team is fully focused on introducing the UK to vertical orbital launches with the debut of our UK-built environmentally-friendly rocket, Prime. We will be launching from our own pad at Sutherland Spaceport in Scotland in the near future.”
Skyrora counts down
Fellow Scottish rocket firm Skyrora has also previously announced plans to launch in 2023. The company has already carried out test launches of its rocket technology, and it is likely to be one of the first to reach orbit with vertical launches from UK soil.
The pioneering company has faced its own setbacks – a 'software complication' led to an anomaly and crash during a test launch in Iceland in October 2022 – but tests have demonstrated promising capabilities, including nominal performance during static fire tests and operation of a mobile spaceport in Iceland within seven days of arriving on site. The firm plans to launch from SaxaVord spaceport on the Shetland Island of Unst.
The company tweeted:
Lockheed Martin brings experience
Also aiming to launch from SaxaVord is Lockheed Martin. With extensive space mission experience, including building spacecraft that have landed on Mars, the American aerospace giant might have something of a head start as it targets vertical launches from the UK. In total, the SaxaVord spaceport could see up to 30 launches each year.
Astraius plans horizontal launches
Virgin Orbit is not the only firm targeting horizontal launches from the UK. At the Farnborough International Airshow 2022, British-American commercial space launch company Astraius told Professional Engineering how it plans to avoid the challenges of vertical launch by loading smaller launch vehicles into the back of US Air Force C-17s.
Unlike Cosmic Girl, Astraius said the C-17s would not need modification to launch satellites and would instead use parachutes to deploy rockets at the optimal altitude and position. The launch vehicles would then ignite and head towards orbit. The company aims to launch from Prestwick Airport in Glasgow.
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Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.