UK gets go-ahead for first spaceport rocket launch

Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) has been given the green light to launch rockets from the UK's new spaceport in the Shetland Islands.

The new Launch Operator Licence allows it to launch up to ten rockets a year into space, carrying things like satellites, and the first launch is planned for this year.

It's a big deal for the UK's space industry and, if successful, it will make history as the first vertical rocket launch of a satellite from European soil and Jorn Spurmann, from RFA, described it as a "groundbreaking moment".

There's still work to do, though, as while the German-based company was initially planning to launch in 2024, a test rocket caught fire and exploded - no-one was hurt.

RFA's rocket, which doesn't have a crew, is called RFA One; a giant 30-meter-tall vehicle, about the length of two lorries with their trailers.

The rocket will take off from Launch Pad 1 'Fredo' at the SaxaVord site.

It will then travel north west, out over the Norwegian Sea and the North Pole, before hopefully entering orbit around 500km above the surface of the Earth.

After launch, the first and second stages of each rocket will separate and fall away once the fuel has been used, allowing the third stage to carry on with the valuable satellite equipment.

The first and second stages will fall back into the sea, sinking to the bottom to form an artificial reef and serve as a habitat for marine life.

The spaceport is located in one of Scotland's most northerly points

It is designed to carry up to 1,300kg of equipment - that's roughly three times as heavy as a grand piano - into what is known as a Sun-synchronous orbit.

A Sun-synchronous orbit means it will be able to shoot satellites into space at a precise angle that allows them to maintain a steady position relative to the Sun.