First Orbital Rocket Launched From Mainland Europe Crashes After Takeoff
upstart writes:
A test rocket intended to kickstart satellite launches from Europe fell to the ground and exploded less than a minute after takeoff from Norway on Sunday, in what the German startup Isar Aerospace had described as an initial test.
The Spectrum started smoking from its sides and crashed back to Earth in a powerful explosion just after its launch from from the Andoya spaceport in the Arctic. Images were broadcast live on YouTube.
The uncrewed rocket was billed as the first attempt at an orbital flight to originate from Europe, where several countries, including Sweden and Britain, have said they want a share of the growing market for commercial space missions.
Isar Aerospace, which had warned the initial launch could end prematurely, said the test produced extensive data that its team could learn from.
[...] The Spectrum is designed for small- and medium-sized satellites weighing up to one metric tonne, although it did not carry a payload on its maiden voyage from the spaceport in Norway.
The mission was intended to collect data on Isar Aerospace's launch vehicle in a first integrated test of all its systems, the Bavarian company said last week.
The company, headquartered in Munich, had previously said it would consider a 30-second flight a success. While not intended to reach orbit on its first mission, the test marked the first commercial orbital flight from a launchpad on the European continent, excluding Russia.
European countries have long relied on paying for launches from Russian space stations but the relationship has broken down since Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
[...] Last year, a report by Mario Draghi, a former European Central Bank president and former prime minister of Italy, recommended Europe could boost its economic growth by recognising space as a key sector. Independent access to space is also increasingly seen as a geopolitical and security issue.
[...] Several destinations around Europe have been marked for spaceport projects, including the British Shetland Islands, the Portuguese Azores, and Esrange in Sweden. Coastal areas near stretches of open water are considered ideal spots for launch sites, as rockets do not have to fly over heavily populated land areas.
Britain has had mixed success as a launch destination. Virgin Orbit, the satellite launch company founded by Richard Branson, filed for bankruptcy in 2023 after its inaugural flight from Cornwall - with a rocket strapped to a Boeing 747 - ended in failure.
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