Virgin Orbit, which is on the agenda today with its efforts to rival SpaceX, was founded in 2017 by the parent company Virgin Group. The company, which has been providing launch services for small satellites since then, shared images of its satellite placement mission on January 13.
Virgin Orbit hits success with LauncherOne!
Virgin Orbit modified the Boeing 747 jet in line with its own needs and brought it to a structure that can reach an altitude of at least 30,000 ft. He then successfully launched by loading the satellites on the LauncherOne rocket, which he placed under his wing.
The company said in a message published along with the video it shared:
Virgin Orbit has accomplished something most launch systems would never attempt. By dropping LauncherOne over a thick layer of cloud, we demonstrated for the first time a key element of our air launch system. Inclement weather is no longer an obstacle to returning payloads to orbit on time and exactly where they need to be.
With this share, Virgin Orbit threw stones at its competitors such as SpaceX and Rocket Lab, which use traditional rocket systems launched directly from the ground. Bad weather can delay takeoffs by several days, drive up costs and cause problems for programmers, especially as SpaceX has experienced on its most recent mission.
Virgin Orbit points out that since the rocket’s actual release occurs above the air systems, its system can be launched in a wider climate. As long as the aircraft is safe to take off and land, there is no obstacle to the mission.
However, Virgin Orbit’s launch method essentially limits it to handling small satellites, while SpaceX’s hardware allows for much larger payloads alongside crewed missions.
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