Early next week, Virgin Orbit will write its name in British history. She plans to launch
What is known
January 10 at 00:16 (EET) Start Me Up mission starts. The Virgin Orbit rocket will launch from Cornwell. In case of technical malfunctions or adverse weather conditions, the company will set a new date, also in January.
LauncherOne rocket will send satellites into orbitseven organizations (private and public). Among them are the Coordinated Ionospheric Reconstruction CubeSat Experiment (CIRCE). This is a project of the UK Defense Science and Technology Laboratory and the US Naval Research Laboratory. Also on board will be a duo of British Prometheus-2 satellites for the UK Department of Defense.
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The role of the first stage is played by a plane called Cosmic Girl. This is a Boeing 747-400 that was bought by Virgin a few years ago.