Virgin orbit will use modified Boeing 747 to launch satellite

CTOnews.com, January 6 (Xinhua) according to CCTV news, Virgin Orbital plans to launch seven satellites, the "Start Me Up" mission, at 22:16 GMT on January 9 at Cornwall Space Port in southwestern England.

Of course, if the launch needs to be delayed due to technical problems or bad weather conditions, the company will arrange another day for the launch throughout January.

The CTOnews.com inquiry found that Virgin Orbital will work with the British Space Agency (UKSA), the Cornwall Commission and the Royal Air Force to complete the mission. According to reports, this batch of satellites are launched by modifying the Boeing 747 to load rockets under the wing to launch commercial satellites for customers.

Given that Start Me Up is the "first" in many ways, such as Virgin Orbital's first international launch and Western Europe's first commercial launch. The private aerospace company said the LauncherOne orbital launch vehicle that will be used for the mission is now connected to Cosmic Girl and the Boeing 747s will serve as its first-stage launch platform.

In this landmark launch, they will put satellites from seven commercial and government customers into orbit, with payloads including CIRCE (coordinated Ionospheric Reconstruction Cube Satellite experiment, a joint project between the British Defense Science and Technology Laboratory and the United States Naval Research Laboratory), as well as two cube satellites under the Prometheus 2 program of the British Ministry of Defence.