Watch: rocket explodes during test for UK’s first vertical launch

A rocket engine has exploded during tests for a landmark space flight from the UK.

The fire erupted at SaxaVord Spaceport, which aims to host the first vertical launch into orbit from Western Europe. German startup Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) has exclusive access to the spaceport’s first launch pad.

On Monday evening, RFA planned to complete a nine-engine test of its launch vehicle. But disaster soon struck.

At 22.42 CEST, the company announced that an “anomaly” had destroyed the first stage of the RFA ONE rocket. Footage of the incident shows the engine sending a fireball into the night sky.

A longer video from the BBC shows the failure at ignition during the Static Fire test. The vehicle tried to depress at the point of the anomaly, but it was then just a progression to the RUD of the entire booster.https://t.co/2eEITjzdcl https://t.co/leFC8APl8B pic.twitter.com/YtjChWPS5w

— Chris Bergin – NSF (@NASASpaceflight) August 20, 2024

RFA said no-one was injured in the incident and the launch pad was saved. The company will now investigate the cause of the explosion.

“Our goal is to return to regular operations as soon as possible,” RFA said in a statement.

SaxaVord has also sought to allay concerns. “All safety protocols were fully observed and the site evacuated prior to the test, meaning no RFA or SaxaVord personnel were at risk,” the company said.

The spaceport has committed to continue the test campaign.

SaxaVord’s rocket plans

Located on the island of Unst — the northernmost of the inhabited British Isles — SaxaVord has been repeatedly backed by the UK government.

In 2017, the county’s space agency identified the site as its preferred location for satellite launches.

“The site offering the maximum payload mass to orbit is SaxaVord in the Shetlands, from where direct launch is possible to both SSO [sun-synchronous orbits] and polar orbits,” the agency said.

SaxaVord is also the only spaceport in the UK with a vertical launch licence, which was granted in December.

The following March, the British government announced a fresh £10mn investment in the site.

SaxaVord says the support will boost the wider spacetech sector.

“We could hit the moon from our location,” Scott Hammond, the spaceport’s operations director and deputy CEO, told TNW last year. “But we are really an enabler for everything else.”