Virgin Atlantic Cosmic Girl, a repurposed Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747 aircraft carrying a rocket, is parked at Spaceport Cornwall, at Cornwall Airport in Newquay, England, Monday, Jan. 9, 2023. (Ben Birchall/PA via AP)
LONDON (AP) — British officials and space scientists said Tuesday they were disappointed but not deterred after the first attempt to launch satellites into orbit from the U.K. ended in failure.
U.S.-based Virgin Orbit attempted its first international launch late Monday, using a modified jumbo jet to carry one if its rockets from Cornwall in southwestern England over the Atlantic Ocean.
The plane released the rocket, carrying nine small satellites for a mix of civilian and domestic uses. But about two hours after the plane took off, the company reported “an anomaly that has prevented us from reaching orbit.”
The plane, piloted by a Royal Air Force pilot, returned to Cornwall. The rocket and satellites were destroyed.
“We’re feeling awful, to be honest – I’m not going to lie,” Melissa Thorpe, head of Spaceport Cornwall. said.
“This isn’t the first time we’ve been knocked, this is the biggest definitely, but I feel OK and we’ll get up and we’ll go again,” she said.
Virgin Orbit, which was founded by British transport and telecommunications tycoon Richard Branson, previously completed four similar launches from California.
Hundreds of people gathered for the Cornwall launch had cheered when a repurposed Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747 aircraft, named Cosmic Girl, took off late Monday. Around an hour into the flight, the plane released the rocket at around 35,000 feet (around 10,000 meters) over the Atlantic Ocean to the south of Ireland.
Virgin Orbit chief executive Dan Hart said “a technical failure appears to have prevented us from delivering the final orbit.”
“While we are very proud of the many things that we have successfully achieved as part of this mission, we are mindful that we failed to provide our customers with the launch service they deserve,” he said.
The mission was a collaboration between the U.K. Space Agency, the Royal Air Force, Virgin Orbit and Cornwall Council.
Britain hopes to become a major player in making and launching satellites, and is building a spaceport in the Shetland Islands north of Scotland as well as the one in Cornwall.
U.K. Business Secretary Grant Shapps said Monday’s launch was “a big moment” despite its failure.
“Space is difficult,” Shapps told Sky News.
“It didn’t work. I’ve no doubt that they’ll pick themselves up, dust themselves off and they’ll go again once they find out what exactly went wrong with it,” he said.
2021 has been a year filled with extreme weather conditions. Hundreds of thousands of people recently saw the effects of massive tornados that swept across six states. Now, experts say climate change could have played a major role. Jennifer Marlon, research scientist and lecturer at the Yale School of the Environment, joins Cheddar News to discuss.
Anthony Tall, sports agent and president of Miracle Sports Agency, joins Cheddar News to talk about the challenges professional sports leagues are facing amid a surge in coronavirus cases across the U.S.
Extreme weather hit all of us in 2021. Deadly heat hit parts of the U.S. that normally don't even need air conditioning. More than 52,000 wildfires broke out, a terrifying example of what can happen when extreme heat mixes with drought. Hurricane Ida was so powerful it actually briefly reversed the flow of the Mississippi River. Cheddar News did a deep dive into this year's unbelievable weather and how climate change may have impacted it.
With the New Year just around the corner, many people will be making new health and fitness goals. However, after the initial January push, it's easy to drop your resolutions and go back to your old habits. Joan Ifland, CEO of Food Addiction Reset, discusses her best tips for following through with New Year's Resolutions.
Carlo and Baker preview President Biden's address to the nation as Omicron becomes the new dominant Covid strain. Plus, Trump gets booed for getting his booster and the White House gets a new puppy.
Alinda Mashiku, Conjunction Analysis and Risk Assessment Deputy Manager at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, joins Future of Space: Humankind's Leap Forward to explain how space debris is threatening operations in space at a time when more satellites are being deployed.
Marshall Smith, Senior Vice President of Space Systems at Nanoracks and Kirk Shireman, Vice President of the Lunar Exploration Campaign at Lockheed Martin join Future of Space: Humankind's Leap Forward to discuss upcoming plans for developing their Starlab commercial space station after being awarded a $160 million contract by NASA.
The CDC recently endorsed the advisory committee's recommendation that people should receive the Pfizer or Moderna COVID vaccines over the Johnson & Johnson shot, leaving some questions and concerns for the public. Epidemiologist Dr. Eric Feigl-Ding, spoke to Cheddar about the shift in the agency's stance, and what it might mean. "If you already have it, any side effects are already long past," he said. "Going forward is what they're saying. That getting a booster you should get the Moderna or the Pfizer booster, and I don't think they're encouraging anyone to get de novo Johnson & Johnson as their first shot anymore."
The billionaire space race took off in 2021, making major strides in space tourism. That growth is only expected to skyrocket in the next year, as the government and private institutions and companies look to shape the final frontier's exploration. Cheddar News dives into the biggest moments of the year in space, and what comes next for space travel and tourism.
Chloe and Halle Bailey are no strangers to hard work. The sisters got their start performing covers on YouTube and have become a force in the music industry. Since then, the two have spread their wings beyond their duo group to individual projects. Now they're coming together to face off in the LG OLED Ultimate Gaming Showdown. Chloe and Halle join Cheddar News to discuss.
