Tag: LauncherOne
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Blastoff for 3-D printing: How Virgin Orbit harnesses high tech for low-cost rockets
Virgin Orbit’s Scott Macklin leads a tour of the company’s production facility in Long Beach, Calif. A full-size schematic of the LauncherOne rocket’s upper stage is painted on the floor. (GeekWire Photo / Chelsey Ballarte) LONG BEACH, Calif. — Virgin Orbit aims to blaze a trail on the final frontier, but in order to do that,…
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Virgin Orbit sign SITAEL contract for LauncherOne satellite launch
Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne has signed an agreement to launch a SITAEL satellite developed in collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Italian Space Agency (ASI). The all-electric propulsion microsat demonstrator called µHETsat will be air-launched on a rocket carried under the wing of Virgin Orbit’s Cosmic Girl carrier plane. Virgin Orbit Launch: The…
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Virgin Orbit satellite launch spin-off created with ex-Boeing exec at the helm
An artist’s conception shows Virgin Orbit’s carrier airplane, Cosmic Girl, deploying a LauncherOne rocket for a high-altitude orbital launch. (Virgin Galactic Illustration) Virgin Galactic says it’s spinning off its satellite launch operation, including the LauncherOne rocket development program, as a new commercial space company called Virgin Orbit. The newly created company’s first president, Dan Hart,…
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Virgin Galactic preparing for busy LauncherOne future
While Virgin Galactic prepare to restart test operations with its SpaceShipTwo vehicle, the company has revealed an ambitious future for its LauncherOne system – including a home base in California that is currently “too big” for their needs, but will allow for the expectation for dozens of missions per year. LauncherOne will be tasked with…
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Virgin Galactic preparing for busy LauncherOne future
While Virgin Galactic prepare to restart test operations with its SpaceShipTwo vehicle, the company has revealed an ambitious future for its LauncherOne system – including a home base in California that is currently “too big” for their needs, but will allow for the expectation for dozens of missions per year. LauncherOne will be tasked with…
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Virgin Galactic gets a 747 jet to serve as flying launch pad for its LauncherOne rocket
An artist’s conception shows a Virgin Galactic 747 jet carrying a LauncherOne rocket. (Credit: Virgin Galactic) Virgin Galactic showed off its latest mothership today: a Boeing 747-400 jet that it acquired from its corporate cousins at Virgin Atlantic to serve as the platform for its LauncherOne rocket. LauncherOne is designed to be launched from a…
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Virgin Galactic in transition one year after fatal accident
Virgin Galactic’s second SpaceShipTwo vehicle goes “weight on wheels” in Mojave in May. Credit: Virgin Galactic Last year’s fatal crash of Virgin Galactic’s suborbital rocket plane has delayed the start of the company’s commercial operations at least a year, prompting a change in mindset from a “period of euphoria to a period of real, measurable,…
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NASA to fly CubeSats on three new commercial launchers
File photo of a one-unit (1U) CubeSat. Credit: NASA Ames NASA announced Wednesday it is joining a chorus of companies pushing for easier access to space, awarding $17.1 million in contracts to three firms developing new launchers tailored for lifting lightweight satellites into orbit. None of the rockets have flown yet, but NASA plans to…
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Virgin Galactic’s LauncherOne to utilize a dedicated aircraft
Due to customer demand, Virgin Galactic claims it has nearly doubled the amount of payload that customers can deliver to orbit on its LauncherOne system – ranging from 200 kg into the standard Sun-Synchronous Orbit, or 400kg to LEO – for less than $10m. The company claims it is now in the process of acquiring…
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OneWeb launch deal called largest commercial rocket buy in history
File photo of a Soyuz launch from French Guiana. Credit: ESA/CNES/Arianespace – Optique Video du CSG – S. Martin Backed by a fresh capital infusion and regulatory rights to a valued slice of satellite communications spectrum, the space-based Internet company OneWeb has contracted with Arianespace and Virgin Galactic to deploy hundreds of refrigerator-sized spacecraft around…