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What will happen to Spaceport Cornwall then, if Virgin Orbit shuts down? Seems like a massive waste of investment then since I don't think any launch provider w

What will happen to Spaceport Cornwall then, if Virgin Orbit shuts down? Seems like a massive waste of investment then since I don't think any launch provider will take its place. Pretty grim for the UK space launch industry as a whole.

ac29 4y ago
"Spaceport" Cornwall is just Cornwall Airport. There are no traditional (vertical) launch facilities there.
SideburnsOfDoom 4y ago
> the UK space launch industry as a whole Was the UK ever a good place for space launches in the first place? It's too far from the equator.
- peoplearepeople 4y ago
  Countries often want independent capabilities even if it costs more. And plenty of of launch types don't care about distance to the equator, for example polar orbits. Lots of launch sites are very north, for example Baikonur, Plesetsk, and Vostochny.
- basementcat 4y ago
  Some satellites have polar or higher inclination orbits.
- ta1243 4y ago
  UK is perfect for launches to about 55 degree retrograde inclination You wouldn't want to launch into a sun-syncrhonous orbit from the Equator. Or from Florida or Cape Canaveral for that matter. The delta-V you start with which is great for an equatorial launch has to be shed to get into a polar or near-polar orbit. From Scotland though, there's far less Delta V than Florida, or from French Guiana.
- BitwiseFool 4y ago
  The UK's only orbital rocket launched from Australia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Arrow https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Arrow
rexreed 4y ago
It will be just fine: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newquay_Airport https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newquay_Airport "The airport handled 461,300 passengers in 2017, a 24.2% increase over the previous year.[2] Newquay has a CAA Public Use Aerodrome Licence that allows flights for the public transport of passengers or for flying instruction. The Cornwall Air Ambulance is based at the airport. Since 2012, the airport has hosted the Aerohub enterprise zone. The airport is also the base for Spaceport Cornwall / Virgin Orbit space satellite launches." Not that much was actually invested or committed, relatively speaking: "In June 2019, the UK government and Cornwall Council announced they were prepared to invest up to £20M into the airport to create the Spaceport Cornwall as a base for Virgin Orbit. On 5 November 2019, the UK Space Agency announced that it would provide £7.35M to establish Virgin Orbit operations at Spaceport Cornwall." Not all of that was provided.

ac29 4y ago

"Spaceport" Cornwall is just Cornwall Airport. There are no traditional (vertical) launch facilities there.

SideburnsOfDoom 4y ago

> the UK space launch industry as a whole Was the UK ever a good place for space launches in the first place? It's too far from the equator.

peoplearepeople 4y ago
Countries often want independent capabilities even if it costs more. And plenty of of launch types don't care about distance to the equator, for example polar orbits. Lots of launch sites are very north, for example Baikonur, Plesetsk, and Vostochny.
basementcat 4y ago
Some satellites have polar or higher inclination orbits.
ta1243 4y ago
UK is perfect for launches to about 55 degree retrograde inclination You wouldn't want to launch into a sun-syncrhonous orbit from the Equator. Or from Florida or Cape Canaveral for that matter. The delta-V you start with which is great for an equatorial launch has to be shed to get into a polar or near-polar orbit. From Scotland though, there's far less Delta V than Florida, or from French Guiana.
BitwiseFool 4y ago
The UK's only orbital rocket launched from Australia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Arrow https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Arrow

rexreed 4y ago

It will be just fine: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newquay_Airport https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newquay_Airport "The airport handled 461,300 passengers in 2017, a 24.2% increase over the previous year.[2] Newquay has a CAA Public Use Aerodrome Licence that allows flights for the public transport of passengers or for flying instruction. The Cornwall Air Ambulance is based at the airport. Since 2012, the airport has hosted the Aerohub enterprise zone. The airport is also the base for Spaceport Cornwall / Virgin Orbit space satellite launches." Not that much was actually invested or committed, relatively speaking: "In June 2019, the UK government and Cornwall Council announced they were prepared to invest up to £20M into the airport to create the Spaceport Cornwall as a base for Virgin Orbit. On 5 November 2019, the UK Space Agency announced that it would provide £7.35M to establish Virgin Orbit operations at Spaceport Cornwall." Not all of that was provided.