The first attempt to launch satellites into orbit from British soil ended in a “painful” failure at the final hurdle last night as the rocket made it into space but failed to reach the right altitude, with its multimillion-pound cargo of satellites left to break up in the atmosphere.⁠ ⁠ An investigation is now under way to find out why, after the first-stage engine had successfully blasted the rocket and its payload of nine satellites into space, the second-stage engine suffered an unknown “anomaly” and failed to guide the rocket to its designated orbit.⁠ ⁠ A crowd of more than 2,000 spectators in Cornwall had whooped and cheered amid a festival atmosphere at Britain’s first spaceport as a Virgin Orbit jet, carrying a 24-tonne rocket beneath its wing, took off without a hitch at 10.02pm.⁠ ⁠ Matt Archer, head of commercial spaceflight at the UK Space Agency, said shortly before 1am: “The second-stage engine had a technical anomaly and didn’t reach the required orbit. We don’t know what caused that. But in effect, the rocket has not reached the required altitude to maintain its orbit or deploy the satellites, and therefore the mission was unsuccessful.”⁠ ⁠ 🔗 Read the full story via link in bio #virginorbit