Cosmic Girl arrives in Long Beach

spacenews.com...

I'll have to dig into my pictures next time I can get my laptop online. We caught her in Mojave near the Stratolaunch hangar.

Taxi tests.

a reply to: anzha

She's been caught flying a couple times in the last two weeks, probably with the carrier attached.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Captive carries are underway. They are doing the ground taxis first and then will do the CCs in flight.

a reply to: anzha

Just don't get the point ..who are they trying to attract..it doesn't look like the payload for the rocket would be that great...are them aming for low earth orbit?and what the military application?Icbm launch or missoe defence ?

a reply to: Slys13

Satellites are getting smaller with every generation. A rocket that size can carry probably a hundred or more cubesats. They all work together and make one big satellite, for a fraction of the cost.

a reply to: Zaphod58

This also allows for tailored orbits (inclination, ascending node/descending node, etc) which would require a much bigger satellite because it would launch from a particular fixed locale and then have to expend fuel to get to the desired orbit.

She just did her captive carry first flight:

Virgin Orbit performed the first captive carry flight of its LauncherOne air-launch system Nov. 18, a key testing milestone as the company moves closer to a first flight.

The company’s “Cosmic Girl” aircraft, a Boeing 747 with a pylon added to its left wing to which the LauncherOne rocket attaches, took off from the Southern California Logistics Airport in Victorville, California, shortly after 2 p.m. Eastern, according to flight tracking services. It landed back at the airport about 90 minutes later after flying above the high desert region of Southern California, including passing over the Mojave Air and Space Port.

spacenews.com...

www.parabolicarc.com...

Virgin Orbit has set Sunday for their first launch attempt.

www.12news.com...

a reply to: Zaphod58

Too little too late. Outside of unusual inclinations, the low-cost microlauncher market is going to be obliterated by Starship's cost per pound to orbit numbers.

Also, since Starship will have those attitude adjustment flaps, does that technically mean that it's an aircraft and we can talk about it here?

Sensor issue on the rocket. They're defueling and will try Monday between 1 and 3pm

Reporting that the sensor issue has been resolved. Window opens at 10am Monday, closes at 2pm.

Flight plan is filed. Take off from Mojave Air and Space Port at 1040, out past the Channel Islands before coming back southeast, returning to the Air and Space Port at 1147.

Clean separation, but the flight was terminated by engineers shortly after.

This was posted to Reddit. No idea where it was shot from, or any details about it.