Virgin Orbit carries satellites to space for the first time

Virgin Orbit’s second launch demonstration flight has been smoother than its first. The company has carried customer satellites into space for the first time after the Cosmic Girl host aircraft successfully deployed the LauncherOne rocket over the Pacific Ocean for its latest test. The payload included nine missions from NASA and several universities, most of which were launching cubesats and other tiny orbiters.

LauncherOne had yet to release the satellites as of this writing, but Virgin said it had successfully crossed into space and entered orbit. The first demo ended abruptly after LauncherOne failed to ignite.