Moscow. June 30. INTERFAX-The California-based private company Virgin Orbit has successfully launched seven medium-sized satellites into orbit using a LauncherOne rocket, according to the company's broadcast.
"We are incredibly proud to have completed another flawless mission in space with our unique launch system," the company confirmed the success of the mission on its Twitter page.
LauncherOne, attached to a modified Boeing 747 aircraft, gained an altitude of 10.6 km. The plane then undocked a rocket over the Pacific Ocean, which then turned on the NewtonThree first-stage rocket engine. It allowed LauncherOne to independently gain sufficient altitude (500-1100 km above the Earth's surface) to separate the first stage.
Then the second stage separated from the first, after which the NewtonFour second stage engine was started. As soon as the rocket reached the intended orbit, the engine was turned on and turned on for a while to more accurately calibrate the satellite separation location. All 7 medium-sized satellites were launched into orbit at 20: 30 Moscow time.
In January 2021, Virgin Orbit successfully launched 10 CubeSats satellites into orbit.
During a demonstration test in January 2021, a two-stage rocket with a length of 21 meters was dropped at an altitude of approximately 10.2 thousand meters from a modified Boeing 747 aircraft over the Pacific Ocean, after which the engine turned on. Following the separation of the first stage, the rocket went into a regular orbit with ten research mini-satellites of American universities and NASA.