The CAA has announced the news, stating that Virgin Orbit had “taken all reasonable steps to ensure safety risks arising from launch activities are as low as reasonably practicable”.
The launch will see Virgin Orbit’s jumbo, known as Cosmic Girl, carrying LauncherOne, to an altitude of approximately 35,000ft (10km) and then dropping it. Once released into the atmosphere, the LauncherOne rocket will accelerate to 8,000mph (12,875km/h) before deploying seven satellites into orbit with a variety of civil and defence applications.
“Receiving Virgin Orbit’s range and launch licences takes us one step closer to the first satellite launch take-off from UK soil," said Virgin Orbit chief executive Dan Hart, following the announcement.
The mission was named Start Me Up in tribute to the rock band The Rolling Stones.
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