The first space rocket launch from Western Europe failed after a flawless start. Space company Virgin Orbit tried to fly nine satellites into space on a Boeing 747 on Monday evening.
For a long time the mission seemed to go well. For example, the plane with the rocket under it took off without problems at 23:17 (Dutch time) from Newquay in southwest England.
The aircraft, the Cosmic Girl, reached an altitude of 10 kilometers above the Atlantic Ocean. Just after midnight, the aircraft released the LauncherOne rocket containing the nine satellites.
The rocket flight also seemed to go well, but suddenly things went wrong. “It appears we are dealing with an anomaly that is preventing us from entering orbit,” Virgin Orbit said on Chirping about problems.
The rocket and satellites were lost due to technical problems. According to the British space agency, they burned or disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean. The aircraft that launched the rocket landed on Earth with the crew without problems.
Space experts have been eagerly awaiting the launch. Rockets going into space are usually launched from launch sites such as Cape Canaveral (USA), Bajkonoer (Kazakhstan) or Kourou (French Guiana).
