Branson's Virgin Orbit launches 7 satellites from 747 plane

Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit has delivered satellites from three countries into space

Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit delivered satellites from three countries into space Tuesday, its second rocket launch from a plane this year. The company’s modified 747 jet dubbed Cosmic Girl jet took off from California’s Mojave Desert, carrying the 70-foot (21-meter) rocket beneath its left wing. Once the plane was over the Pacific near the Channel Islands, the LauncherOne rocket peeled away, then fired its engine to head to space. The drop occurred at an altitude of about 37,000 feet (11,000 meters). Camera views showed the package of seven small satellites on the end of the second stage, against the curve of the blue Earth. The satellites are from the U.S. Defense Department, the Royal Netherlands Air Force and Poland’s SatRevolution company, which is working to set up an Earth-observing constellation. An hour after the rocket firing, Virgin Orbit was still awaiting confirmation that the launch was a success.