Britain blasts off!
Countdown to Cornwall’s launch today
THE first launch of a space rocket into orbit from Britain is set to take place tonight.
A ‘re-purposed’ jumbo jet called Cosmic Girl will take off from the UK’s first spaceport in Cornwall carrying the 70ft rocket under its wing to a height of 35,000ft, before releasing it south of Ireland.
The rocket, LauncherOne, will then soar into space with a payload of nine satellites. Their purposes range from navigation to sea surveillance to prevent illegal fishing, smuggling and
piracy. The rocket launch, called Start Me Up after the Rolling Stones song, has been arranged by Virgin Orbit from Cornwall Airport near Newquay. It is set to be attended by 2,500 people. Thousands more, including billionaire Virgin founder Sir Richard Branson are set to see a livestream on YouTube.
However, experts warned the weather could see a last-minute postponement until later this month. David Rothery, professor of planetary geosciences at the Open University, said: ‘This rocket launch sprinkles a little bit of stardust on the UK.’