Cosmic Girl: why we should embrace the UK’s first space launch
Tmedia1 via Wikimedia Commons
In the first instalment of his column this term, Ashwin Gohil discusses what ‘Cosmic Girl’ could mean for the future of the space industry in the UK, and opportunities in Cornwall.
The launch of the UK’s flagship satellite mission, Cosmic Girl, may not have gone to plan on 9th January 2023, but there is still much to celebrate. Late on the ninth, the spacecraft failed to release satellites due to an “anomaly” with its associated LauncherOne rocket following the latter’s launch by Virgin Orbit. This episode, however, is just one piece in the wider chess game of aviation and space exploration. After all, making progress – especially in the world of science and technology - is very rarely linear, and the launch’s incredibly positive local impact should not be underestimated.
When the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) decided to grant the remaining licences for Virgin Orbit to send LauncherOne into space alongside Britain’s Cosmic Girl, some observers were sceptical of the potential for success. True, the UK was relatively inexperienced in the space industry, and the project did consume a serious amount of capital. Others, however, marvelled at the opportunities this afforded Britain, for – perhaps ironically - precisely the same reasons. They pondered the significance of the event for Britain’s global standing, not least because the Cornwall Airport Newquay site was identified as a potential launch spot all the way back in 2015.
Skip forward to 2023, though, and many of the project’s impacts have already begun to take shape, particularly for the Cornish population. Despite eyebrows being raised at the final result of the mission, therefore, the story of the launch should be regarded as one of gradualism and progress. However significant the ‘failure’ on the 9th, the credibility of Britain’s space launch should not be brought into question.
It can’t be doubted that Cornwall Council’s investment of a staggering £12 million into the project (alongside almost £8 million from the British government) is a huge investment. Much of that circa £20 million has already, however, begun to be repaid. Putting aside the pride that comes with Cosmic Girl’s launch being a largely home-grown project - despite its collaboration with the American company Virgin Orbit - the mission has rendered Britain a serious competitor in the space industry.
But the project has also had a very positive impact on the local community, causing macro changes at a micro level. Louis Gardner, a local Cornwall Councillor, stated that the spaceport has created around 150 extra jobs within the county, bringing in a whopping £200 million to the local economy every year. And that’s not to mention the creation of almost 250 further indirect jobs by 2030. Gardner also commented on the non-political nature of the story, which, at a heavily politicised time for the country, is surely a welcome narrative. Such points should be remembered, particularly when reading reports from the 9th January.
The extensive media coverage of the launch has opened the doors of investment in the Southwest county, bringing opportunities to those outside of London. This has put a smile on the faces of British space aviators and politicians who highlight the importance of expanding resources and commerce outside of the capital. But it is also a source of much pride to the Cornish community. Indeed, satellite manufacturers interested in either re-locating or establishing themselves in Cornwall have already been in touch with the council. Excitingly for Cornwall, too, there is expected to be an exponential increase in the local economy and employment over the next half a decade. These are points to celebrate and embrace, rather than forget due to the failure on the 9th January.
But it’s not just the economy and employment that we ought to focus on. The event also has an impact on the younger generation, as all Cornwall schoolchildren have been visited by spaceport representatives as part of a wider initiative to empower and inspire the next cohort of STEM professionals in Britain. This will not only drive involvement in British science and technology as an industry, but will have the supplementary benefit of opening doors for the Cornish youth.
All in all, it’s no surprise that the head of Spaceport Cornwall, Melissa Thorpe, reported that her and her team were “feeling awful” following the January 9th episode, but this should not detract from the overall story of the space launch. On a macro scale, these efforts will boost the country’s global ranking in the space industry in due course, fuelling Britain’s desire to be on par with the major ‘space giants’, the USA and China. Perhaps the age-old adage, ‘the journey is more important than the destination’, is a more apt narrative for these events, especially in light of the positive effects on the Cornish community, and indeed the future of space and aviation in general.