The coming week: Virgin Galactic, ABL Space, SpaceX and Chinese launches planned – Parabolic Arc

LauncherOne ignites after being dropped by Cosmic Girl. (Image credit: Virgin Orbit)

While there was only one launch globally in the first week of 2023, Week 2 will be a lot busier. Virgin Orbit will conduct its first launch from the UK, ABL Space is hoping to launch its first rocket ever, and SpaceX and China have three launches apiece on their manifests.

Orbital launches
8th-14th January

*Chinese Academy of Space Technology
+China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation

Virgin Orbit’s will conduct its Start Me Up launch from Spaceport Cornwall, England. The company’s Cosmic Girl 747 jetliner will take off from Newquay Cornwall Airport and deliver the LauncherOne rocket off the south coast of Ireland. It will be the first orbital launch from the UK.

The rocket carries nine satellites from the United Kingdom, United States, Oman and Poland. The earth observation satellite AMAN will be Oman’s first satellite.

Virgo Orbit
Start Me Up launch payloads

* Defense Science and Technology Laboratory
# US Naval Research Laboratory
+ National Intelligence Bureau

All of Virgin Orbit’s previous flights have departed from Mojave Air and Space Port in Mojave, California. LauncherOne has a record of four successes and one failure.

ABL Space is hoping to launch its RS1 launch vehicle for the first time this week from the Pacific Spaceport Complex – Alaska – after several unsuccessful attempts over the past year. The launch window runs from January 9th to 13th. The rocket carries two VariSat technology demonstration satellites designed for high-frequency marine data communications.

RS1 rocket at Pacific Spaceport Complex – Alaska. (Image credit: ABL Space Systems)

RS1 is a two-stage rocket designed to deliver payloads weighing 1,350 kg (2,976 lb) into low Earth orbit.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 is scheduled to launch 40 OneWeb broadband satellites from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida today. It is the second of three Falcon 9 launches booked by OneWeb.

Another Falcon 9 will launch 51 broadband Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California 24 hours later. It will be SpaceX’s first Starlink launch this year. The company has launched 3,666 Starlink satellites on 70 flights since February 2018.

Elon Musk’s company will turn its attention back to Florida for a Falcon Heavy launch on Thursday. The giant rocket will launch two satellites for the US Space Force.

China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) has scheduled two launches that will carry communications and technology demonstration satellites.

Galactic Energy has scheduled the launch of its Ceres-1 rocket. The payload for the flight is unknown.

The start of the last week

SpaceX will launch its sixth transporter mission on January 3 with 114 payloads on board.

Transporter 6 – Top payloads

+ Agency for advanced defense research projects
*5 satellites and Skykraft satellite providers
++Royal Netherlands Space Center
^ Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research
**Norwegian Defense Research Institution

SpaceX has launched 550 payloads on six transporter missions since January 2021. All flights took place in sun-synchronous orbits.