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☆ English resort counts down to western Europe's first satellite launch
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Henry Nicholls | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Henry NichollsNEWQUAY, England, Jan 9 (Reuters) - An English surfing resort was counting down to the first launch of orbital satellites into space from western Europe on Monday, when Virgin Orbit's mission will transform the Cornish town of Newquay into the country's first spaceport. The "horizontal" launch will catapult the resort in southwest England, population 20,000 and famous for its reliable waves rolling off the Atlantic, into the limelight as western Europe's go-to destination for small satellites. The European Space Agency's (ESA) Ariane 6 rocket, designed to carry large satellites, has also had delays. "Assuming that everything continues to look good we're currently tracking well for launch," a Virgin Orbit spokeswoman said on Sunday. The LEO sector is growing rapidly, spurred by satellite broadband companies such as Elon Musk's Starlink, Amazon and London-headquartered OneWeb.

☆ The first ever orbital space launch from the UK is due to take off on Monday
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Hannah Ward-Glenton | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The modified Boeing 747 plane, named "Cosmic Girl", will take off from Spaceport Cornwall in southwest England. LONDON — The first orbital rocket launch in Western Europe is set to take place in the U.K. on Monday evening. Virgin Orbit had lowered its forecast for launches in 2022 to three, having initially expected to make between four and six earlier in the year. On announcing its third-quarter results for 2022 in November, Virgin Orbit also said it raised $25 million to boost its depleting cash reserve. Shares of Virgin Orbit hit a three-week high Friday, trading at $2.11.

☆ Western Europe's first satellite launch mission takes off
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Paul Sandle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/6] Technicians work on Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne rocket, attached to the wing of Cosmic Girl, a Boeing 747-400 aircraft, ahead of UK's First launch, at Spaceport Cornwall at Newquay Airport in Newquay, Britain, January 8, 2023. REUTERS/Henry NichollsSummarySummary Companies Converted Boeing 747 takes off from Newquay, CornwallRocket will be deployed over the Atlantic in next hour'Start Me Up' mission will deploy nine small satellitesNEWQUAY, England, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Virgin Orbit's "Cosmic Girl" carrier aircraft took off from Newquay's spaceport in Cornwall, southwest England on Monday night, the initial stage of Western Europe's first ever satellite launch. More than 2,000 space fans cheered when the aircraft left the runway. The "horizontal" launch has catapulted the resort in southwest England - population 20,000 and famous for its reliable Atlantic waves - into the limelight as Western Europe's go-to destination for small satellites. ($1 = 0.8213 pounds)Additional reporting by Sarah Young; editing by Nick Macfie and Sandra Maler, Kate HoltonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Virgin Orbit stock plummets after failure of its first UK rocket launch
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Michael Sheetz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Virgin Orbit stock fell in trading on Monday evening, after the company confirmed that its first launch out of the United Kingdom failed to reach orbit. Shares of Virgin Orbit fell as much as 30% in after-hours trading, from its previous close of $1.93 a share. Virgin Orbit's webcast showed its LauncherOne rocket released and fired its engine, with the company saying in a tweet that the rocket "successfully reached Earth orbit." Virgin Orbit is reviewing the launch data to identify the source of the failure, and acknowledged that it deleted the tweet about reaching orbit. Monday's mission was Virgin Orbit's sixth to date, and its second launch failure.

☆ Virgin Orbit counts down to first space launch ever from UK soil
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

London CNN —Virgin Orbit is about to conduct the first ever space launch from the United Kingdom. It will also mark the first launch of commercial satellites from western Europe, and the first international launch for Virgin Orbit. Dan Hart, chief executive of Virgin Orbit, described the UK mission as a “historic endeavor.”“This launch represents the opening of a new era in the British space industry and new partnerships across industry, government, and allies,” he said in a statement released Friday. The mission, named “Start Me Up” after the Rolling Stones’ 1981 song, is a joint venture between Virgin Orbit, the UK Space Agency, Cornwall’s local government and the UK’s Royal Air Force. The country’s £16.5 billion ($20 billion) space industry directly supported about 47,000 jobs between 2019 and 2020, according to the latest available government figures.

☆ Richard Branson says Elon Musk made a surprise visit in the middle of the night with his 2-year-old son hours before his first space flight
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-08 | by ( Sam Tabahriti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Richard Branson told The Sunday Times that Elon Musk made a surprise visit to his New Mexico home. A barefoot Musk wanted to wish Branson luck on the flight and brought his 2-year-old son along too. "I think it was about 2:30 a.m.," Branson told The Sunday Times, recalling the morning of July 11, 2022, ahead of his flight to space. "Elon had decided to surprise us" to wish his friend luck on his debut flight, Branson told the newspaper. The SpaceX CEO also went to the launch site to watch the flight and later told Branson: "Congratulations, beautiful flight."

☆ Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit gets green light for first orbital space launch from UK — and will use a repurposed Boeing 747 for the mission
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Kate Duffy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit gained a license for the first orbital space launch from the UK. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), the UK's space regulator, announced in a statement on Wednesday that Virgin Orbit was permitted to launch from Spaceport Cornwall in southern England. Issuing the final license to Virgin Orbit for the UK's first orbital satellite launch was another "major milestone," the CAA said in the statement. Virgin Orbit didn't respond to Insider's request for comment about the new launch date. Virgin Orbit has named the mission "Start Me Up" after a song by The Rolling Stones.

☆ Virgin Orbit: The UK just took a step closer to space flight
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

London CNN —The United Kingdom is one step closer to conducting its first ever satellite launch from its own shores. The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), a regulatory body, said on Wednesday that it had granted the final licenses to Virgin Orbit to carry out the launch. The company has already conducted four successful satellite launch missions in this way from California. “Today we are one step closer to opening the UK’s galactic gateway, with Virgin Orbit receiving an historic first license to allow the UK’s first ever spaceflight launch,” UK transport secretary Mark Harper said in a statement on Wednesday. The CAA said it granted Virgin Orbit the final remaining licenses after it met all necessary safety, security and environmental tests.

☆ India's first private rocket company looks to slash satellite costs
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-26 | by ( Nivedita Bhattacharjee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] Employees pose in front of Vikram-S rocket, India?s first private rocket developed by Skyroot, an Indian Space-Tech startup, at a spaceport in Sriharikota, India, November 18, 2022. The Hyderabad-based company, backed by Singapore's sovereign wealth fund, GIC, says the $68 million it has raised will fund its next two launches. Skyroot faces both established and up-and-coming rocket launch rivals that also promise to bring down costs. India opened the door to private space companies in 2020 with a regulatory overhaul and a new agency to boost private-sector launches. The Skyroot rocket that reached 89.5 kilometers altitude in last week's test launch used carbon-fibre components and 3D-printed parts, including the thrusters.

☆ India Successfully Test Launches Its First Privately Developed Rocket
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Shan Li | Vibhuti Agarwal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The Vikram-S rocket blasted off at around 11:30 a.m. local time from the Sriharikota spaceport, reaching an altitude of 55.6 miles. India tested its first privately developed rocket on Friday with a successful suborbital launch that marks a step forward in the country’s push to develop a commercial space industry. The Vikram-S rocket, which was developed by the startup Skyroot Aerospace, blasted off at around 11:30 a.m. local time from the Sriharikota spaceport off the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It reached an altitude of 89.5 kilometers (55.6 miles), with all of the rocket’s systems working as planned, the company said.

New Delhi CNN Busines —Indian startup Skyroot Aerospace launched the country’s first privately developed rocket, Vikram-S, into space on Friday with support from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Until now, the country’s space industry has been dominated by the state-run ISRO, but Skyroot Aerospace has opened up the sector to private companies. This mission symbolizes not just India’s first private rocket launch but also “the potential of new India,” said Pawan Kumar Chandana, co-founder of Skyroot Aerospace after the launch. Skyroot Aerospace was launched in 2018 and is based in the southern tech hub of Hyderabad. Last year, it became the first startup to enter into an agreement with ISRO to use the Indian space agency’s expertise and to access facilities.

☆ Britain issues first spaceport licence ahead of maiden satellite launch
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Sarah Young | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Britain issued its first spaceport licence on Wednesday, paving the way for the country's maiden satellite launch later this year as it looks to become Europe's leading space industry player. The licence was issued to Spaceport Cornwall. The first UK launch is expected before the end of the year, the UK Space Agency's deputy chief executive, Ian Annett, said in a CAA statement. Virgin Orbit plans to use a modified Boeing 747 with a rocket attached under its wing. The CAA said Spaceport Cornwall had demonstrated it had met the appropriate safety, security and environmental requirements to become a spaceport.

Over recent years, NATO allies and Russia have scaled up military exercises in the region; Chinese and Russian warships conducted a joint exercise in the Bering Sea in September. Four Arctic experts say it would take the West at least 10 years to catch up with Russia's military in the region, if it chose to do so. "NATO is increasing its presence in the Arctic with more modern capabilities," NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg told Reuters. Now NATO and Arctic allies are changing their stance. Sweden and Finland have begun investing in surveillance and deterrence capabilities and military hardware including jets so their air forces can fight alongside Arctic NATO allies.

☆ Virgin Orbit raises $25 million from Branson's conglomerate as cash reserve dwindles
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Michael Sheetz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Virgin Orbit raised $25 million, the company announced Monday alongside its third-quarter results, as the alternative rocket launcher faces a dwindling cash reserve. The company disclosed that Richard Branson's Virgin Group, an existing shareholder, made the additional $25 million investment on Nov. 4. Virgin Orbit emphasized in its report that it will "continue to be opportunistic in the capital markets," as the company is "focusing on cost and operational efficiency to improve cash flow." The company brought in revenue of $30.9 million and had $71.2 million in cash on hand at the end of the third quarter. Virgin Orbit said the fourth launch is currently "paced by spacecraft readiness."

☆ Europe's space agency is turning to Elon Musk's SpaceX after anti-Russian sanctions left it scrambling for rockets
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

SpaceX's Falcon 9 rockets will be used in two launches by the European Space Agency. The agency's boss has previously warned that the rest of the world's space tech is falling behind SpaceX. "In response to EU sanctions against our enterprises, Roscosmos is suspending cooperation with European partners in organizing space launches," it announced at the time. The ESA's choice of SpaceX rockets comes soon after a payment dispute over Musk's Starlink service in Ukraine, which has provided key internet access during the war while normal infrastructure has been offline. SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider on the ESA's use of Falcon 9 rockets.

☆ 'If it blows up, it's cool': The far-out philosophy that explains why Elon Musk won't let a few baby sea turtles stop SpaceX's quest to get to Mars
▼ + stars: | 2022-04-05 | by ( Adam Rogers | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +25 min

In the case of Elon Musk v. Charismatic Megafauna, the agency intends to publish its final report in late April. Musk went on: "Either explicitly or implicitly some people seem to think that humans are a blight on the Earth's surface. Musk is talking about existential risk, the idea that something — an asteroid, a rogue artificial intelligence — might kill every human on Earth. And if you assume that future human minds will "mainly be implemented in computational hardware instead of biological neuronal wetware," as Bostrom does, you end up with a mind-boggling 1054 human lives. Musk has made the defense of "future life" his mission.

☆ (FOTO) Cum ar putea arata...
▼ + stars: | 2020-11-04 | by ( ) www.realitatea.md time to read: +2 min

Spaceport City ar putea opera servicii de navetă spațială comercială de două ore, ducând pasagerii la aproximativ 130 de kilometri în spațiu înainte de a se întoarce pe pământ, scrie Playtech.ro. Personalul îi va ridica în ziua plecării într-o limuzină dedicată și îi va lua la bordul aeronavei. Spaceport City va funcționa ca bază pentru cercetare și afaceri legate de spațiu, spun designerii, și va include o academie de educație pentru a afla despre spațiu. Situl va găzdui evenimente, inclusiv prezentări de modă spațiale și conferințe internaționale, dar va include și un hotel, un cinematograf 4D, o piscină, un muzeu de artă, o sală de sport, un acvariu și o discotecă. Acestea vor face portul vizibil din spațiu, spun designerii.

Persons: Navetele, SPJ Organizations: Association, Spaceport, Mitsubishi, Airbus Locations: Port, Japonia, Asia

☆ Water's edge: the crisis of rising sea levels
▼ + stars: | 2014-09-04 | by ( Reuters Graphic | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +20 min

But sea levels have been rising for 100 years in Baltimore.”ROCKET SCIENCEThe irony is evident at Wallops Flight Facility. Yet this bastion of climate research has been slow to apply the science of sea level rise to its own operations. Reviewers from state and federal agencies criticized the 348-page document for failing to adequately take rising sea levels into account in the project design and impact, or to temper future plans for expansion. Joshua Bundick, Wallops’s environmental planning manager, explained that he distilled the issues “down to only the highest points,” and sea level rise wasn’t among them. The cost to American taxpayers of repeated destruction of the parking lot and causeway from rising sea levels would only increase, Fish and Wildlife officials said.

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