Space Forge, a Cardiff-based start-up, has signed a deal with Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit, located in Long Beach, California, to launch the first satellite from the UK this summer.
The Space Forge Satellite will launch from Spaceport Cornwall in Newquay, Cornwall, on a Virgin Orbit LauncherOne rocket, marking the first satellite launch from British territory.
Virgin Orbit, Space Forge to Launch Satellites From UK Soil
Several Space Forge's satellites, known as ForgeStar, will be sent into space as part of the launch and orbit the Earth for around 300 miles before returning to Earth.
Proactive Investors reported that Space Forge satellites can be launched from conventional launchers to provide fast, dependable, and reusable in-space infrastructure. This summer's launch served as the first demonstration of the company's ability to return to Earth.
Space Forge, based in Cardiff, aims to "lead the clean industrial revolution by harnessing space."
The company wants to exploit conditions in space, including temperature, vacuum, and microgravity, to develop technologies that can be used on Earth.
It thinks that its technology will be employed in various sectors, including electronics and medicines, and that it can be produced far more effectively in space than on Earth.
Virgin Orbit said in January that it expects to launch five further flights in 2022, two of which will be from Spaceport Cornwall. The remaining three will take off from Mojave Air and Space Port, which has served as the launchpad for all Virgin Orbit flights to date.
"The Cornwall launches are targeted around the middle of the year - summertime," Virgin Orbit CEO Dan Hart said during a media call on Jan. 11.
"That's predicated on getting through the licensing process successfully and some of the logistics, but that is what we're driving for," he said.
According to Virgin Orbit's CEO, the inaugural flight from Cornwall will be the first-ever from British territory and the first orbital launch from Europe.
Virgin Orbit is also looking for new launch venues. Guam, Japan, and Brazil might be early contenders, with Australia and "many European nations, as well as those in other areas" posing longer-term possibilities.
About Virgin Orbit
Space.com said Virgin Orbit launches satellites into orbit using a modified Boeing 747 carrier aircraft nicknamed Cosmic Girl, which carries a LauncherOne rocket beneath its wing.
The 70-foot-long (21-meter) LauncherOne, which can launch missions weighing up to 1,100 pounds (500 kilograms), has the edge over typical vertically launched rockets, according to Virgin Orbit, since air-launched missions are more responsive and adaptable.
Virgin Orbit is a subsidiary of billionaire Richard Branson's Virgin Group, which also owns the space travel company Virgin Galactic. After a fuel line in the rocket's first stage ruptured, Virgin Orbit's maiden orbital test flight in May 2020 failed. In 2021 and 2022, the firm bounced back with three consecutive successful launches.
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