Transportation

Virgin Orbit will soon use its modified Boeing 747 to launch satellites into orbit using a rocket strapped to the wing — here's how it works

Dave Mosher and Thomas Pallini

Updated

2020-04-15T13:20:00Z

launcher one space rocket jet airplane richard branson virgin orbit 00012 labeled — Virgin Orbit's modified "Cosmic Girl" jet airplane will soar the "Launcher One" orbital rocket to a mid-flight launch. Virgin Orbit; Business Insider

Virgin Orbit's satellite-launching Boeing 747-400 successfully completed its final developmental test flight on Sunday, five years since its arrival at the space company.
The next step for the newest space company of British entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson is to simulate dropping the wing-mounted rocket named "LauncherOne."
Once the process is fully tested, the company's 747 will be ready to send rockets with a satellite payload into space.
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Sir Richard Branson's space company, Virgin Orbit, just completed its final developmental test with its Boeing 747-400 jet turned satellite launcher and a fully-fueled "captive carry" rocket strapped to its wing.

Taking place two years after debuting its full rocket-and-airplane launch system for the first time, the successful final test flight paves the way for the launch demonstration when the payload will actually be released from the aircraft and brings the company one step closer to a space launch.

Virgin Orbit aims to use the retrofitted 747 to tow "LauncherOne," an orbital-class rocket, as high above Earth as possible, release the rocket, and then blast a small-satellite payload into orbit around Earth.

"Air launch frees missions from traffic jams at the existing launch sites; eliminates the need for costly, fixed ground infrastructure; and makes the system more resilient to unfavorable weather conditions," the company said in an emailed press release.

The next step for Virgin Orbit is to simulate the release mechanism for the rocket to ensure it properly separates from the 747. Once that is complete, the space company will be able to launch rockets into space carrying orbital satellite payloads.

Here's what the new system looks like.

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Sending a rocket into space is astronomically expensive. Even the most affordable launch vehicles today, such as the Falcon 9 rocket built by Elon Musk's space company, SpaceX, can cost more than $62 million per flight.

falcon 9 2 — A Falcon 9 rocket launching toward space. SpaceX via Flickr (public domain)

Source: Business Insider

But the demand to launch smaller, less expensive satellites more frequently is booming, thanks to advances in materials, sensors, and software.

launcher one space rocket jet airplane richard branson virgin orbit 00004 — Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne raised up to the port-side wing of Cosmic Girl. Virgin Orbit

Source: Allied Market Research

Branson hopes to help meet that demand by exclusively launching smaller payloads more often and more affordably with Virgin Orbit.

launcher one space rocket jet airplane richard branson virgin orbit 00002 — Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne orbital rocket mated to Cosmic Girl. Virgin Orbit

Virgin Orbit's 747 provides an aerial launch platform that's reusable, less costly than a traditional rocket launch, and requires a smaller footprint than a traditional rocket launch. The entirety of the aircraft's mobile support system is displayed here.

Virgin Orbit Boeing 747 — Virgin Orbit's entire launch support footprint for the 747. Virgin Orbit

The Jumbo Jet used by Virgin Orbit comes from another Branson company, Virgin Atlantic Airways.

Source: Planespotters.net

Four General Electric CF6 engines power the 747 and enable the journeys to the upper limits of Earth's atmosphere.

Source: Planespotters.net

Though retired from the British long-haul airline in 2015, Cosmic Girl kept her iconic Virgin branding and began flying for Virgin Orbit in November of that year.

Source: Planespotters.net

The 747 played a large role in Virgin Atlantic's history and although the airline is largely retiring the type in favor of more efficient aircraft, Cosmic Girl will carry on the legacy with its new mission for Virgin Orbit.

Virgin Orbit's air-launch concept isn't new — it's used today by a company called Orbital ATK, and NASA and the US military have also used it over the decades.

launcher one space rocket jet airplane richard branson virgin orbit 00003 — Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne orbital rocket attached for the first time to Cosmic Girl. Virgin Orbit

But lighter materials, better avionics, a more powerful jet, and rocket engines, and other advances have made it an increasingly attractive option. Rockets can be launched more efficiently from the stratosphere, which lowers the cost of sending stuff to orbit.

launcher one space rocket jet airplane richard branson virgin orbit 00011 — Sir Richard Branson inside Cosmic Girl, which has been stripped down to reduce weight and allow Virgin Orbit to attach LauncherOne to its port-side wing. Virgin Orbit

So Virgin Orbit has been busy designing, building, and testing LauncherOne's and Cosmic Girl's systems near Long Beach, California, and at the Mojave Air and Space Port.

launcher one space rocket jet airplane richard branson virgin orbit 00005 — Virgin Orbit's Boeing 747, Cosmic Girl, and LauncherOne. Virgin Orbit

One of the first rockets has been performing test flights with the aircraft, though filled with water to test weight and balance.

launcher one space rocket jet airplane richard branson virgin orbit 00007 — Virgin Orbit's Boeing 747, Cosmic Girl, and LauncherOne. Virgin Orbit

Source: Virgin Orbit

LauncherOne is 70 feet long and weighs 57,000 pounds; it's about the size of 25 passenger cars.

The rocket is designed to send up anything from bread-loaf-size to refrigerator-size satellites, which "will deliver everything from internet, in even the most remote regions, to advanced weather-tracking systems to help in the battle against climate change," the company said.

launcher one space rocket jet airplane richard branson virgin orbit 00008.JPG — Virgin Orbit's Boeing 747, Cosmic Girl. Virgin Orbit

Source: Virgin Orbit

The company attached LauncherOne to a pylon under Cosmic Girl's wing on Thursday at its base in Long Beach in less than 24 hours. Preparing a rocket for liftoff on a launchpad, including attaching a payload, normally take days to weeks.

launcher one space rocket jet airplane richard branson virgin orbit 00009.JPG — Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne. Virgin Orbit

"The fact that we shipped a rocket on this route, positioned it under the aircraft, integrated the system, and verified that it all works together for the first time all within a single day still astounds me," Dan Hart, Virgin Orbit's CEO, said in a press release.

launcher one space rocket jet airplane richard branson virgin orbit 00016 — Virgin Orbit employs more than 300 people. Virgin Orbit

Source: Washington Post

Virgin Orbit's next step was to pull off a series of "captive carry" flights, in which Cosmic Girl takes off and flies around with LauncherOne attached to its wing.

launcher one space rocket jet airplane richard branson virgin orbit 00013 — Virgin Orbit's Boeing 747, Cosmic Girl, and LauncherOne. Virgin Orbit

Source: Virgin Orbit

The final captive carry flight flew on April 12. Here's a look from its high-attitude pull-up maneuver.

Source: Virgin Orbit

The tanks for this flight were filled with liquid nitrogen to simulate the liquid oxygen that will be carried during real launch flights.

Source: Virgin Orbit

Having successfully completed its final developmental test flight, Virgin Orbit will next attempt to drop LauncherOne to see how the release mechanism performs.

Source: Virgin Orbit

Then it will be time for a maiden launch into space.

"The company already has hundreds of millions of dollars of launches on contract, for customers ranging from NASA and the US Department of Defense to new start-ups, and everything in between," Virgin Orbit said in a press release.

launcher one space rocket jet airplane richard branson virgin orbit 00015 — Virgin Orbit's Boeing 747, Cosmic Girl, and LauncherOne. Virgin Orbit

Richard Branson Aviation Boeing

Virgin Orbit will soon use its modified Boeing 747 to launch satellites into orbit using a rocket strapped to the wing — here's how it works

Sending a rocket into space is astronomically expensive. Even the most affordable launch vehicles today, such as the Falcon 9 rocket built by Elon Musk's space company, SpaceX, can cost more than $62 million per flight.

But the demand to launch smaller, less expensive satellites more frequently is booming, thanks to advances in materials, sensors, and software.

Branson hopes to help meet that demand by exclusively launching smaller payloads more often and more affordably with Virgin Orbit.

Giving companies this option for small launches would allow them to avoid having to piggyback on a larger spacecraft into orbit around Earth. That approach — called a ride-share — can make getting into space cheaper, but it comes with headaches.

The small ride-sharing payloads are tied to bigger, primary payloads, which are controlled by the main spacecraft's owners. Any delay with the larger spacecraft can push back the launch by months or sometimes years.

Dealing with weather and commercial flight traffic is also an issue when ride-sharing.

Virgin Orbit's 747 provides an aerial launch platform that's reusable, less costly than a traditional rocket launch, and requires a smaller footprint than a traditional rocket launch. The entirety of the aircraft's mobile support system is displayed here.

The Jumbo Jet used by Virgin Orbit comes from another Branson company, Virgin Atlantic Airways.

Four General Electric CF6 engines power the 747 and enable the journeys to the upper limits of Earth's atmosphere.

Though retired from the British long-haul airline in 2015, Cosmic Girl kept her iconic Virgin branding and began flying for Virgin Orbit in November of that year.

The 747 played a large role in Virgin Atlantic's history and although the airline is largely retiring the type in favor of more efficient aircraft, Cosmic Girl will carry on the legacy with its new mission for Virgin Orbit.

Virgin Orbit's air-launch concept isn't new — it's used today by a company called Orbital ATK, and NASA and the US military have also used it over the decades.

But lighter materials, better avionics, a more powerful jet, and rocket engines, and other advances have made it an increasingly attractive option. Rockets can be launched more efficiently from the stratosphere, which lowers the cost of sending stuff to orbit.

So Virgin Orbit has been busy designing, building, and testing LauncherOne's and Cosmic Girl's systems near Long Beach, California, and at the Mojave Air and Space Port.

One of the first rockets has been performing test flights with the aircraft, though filled with water to test weight and balance.

LauncherOne is 70 feet long and weighs 57,000 pounds; it's about the size of 25 passenger cars.

The rocket is designed to send up anything from bread-loaf-size to refrigerator-size satellites, which "will deliver everything from internet, in even the most remote regions, to advanced weather-tracking systems to help in the battle against climate change," the company said.

The company attached LauncherOne to a pylon under Cosmic Girl's wing on Thursday at its base in Long Beach in less than 24 hours. Preparing a rocket for liftoff on a launchpad, including attaching a payload, normally take days to weeks.

"The fact that we shipped a rocket on this route, positioned it under the aircraft, integrated the system, and verified that it all works together for the first time all within a single day still astounds me," Dan Hart, Virgin Orbit's CEO, said in a press release.

Virgin Orbit's next step was to pull off a series of "captive carry" flights, in which Cosmic Girl takes off and flies around with LauncherOne attached to its wing.

The final captive carry flight flew on April 12. Here's a look from its high-attitude pull-up maneuver.

The tanks for this flight were filled with liquid nitrogen to simulate the liquid oxygen that will be carried during real launch flights.

Having successfully completed its final developmental test flight, Virgin Orbit will next attempt to drop LauncherOne to see how the release mechanism performs.

Then it will be time for a maiden launch into space.

"The company already has hundreds of millions of dollars of launches on contract, for customers ranging from NASA and the US Department of Defense to new start-ups, and everything in between," Virgin Orbit said in a press release.