Cosmic Girl

Mission Profile

Cosmic Girl is Virgin Orbit's modified Boeing 747-400 carrier aircraft used to air-launch the LauncherOne rocket to low Earth orbit. The aircraft carries LauncherOne attached to a specially designed pylon under the port wing, releasing it at approximately 10.7 km altitude and Mach 0.82 over the Pacific Ocean or Atlantic Ocean before LauncherOne ignites and ascends to orbit. Cosmic Girl supported five LauncherOne missions including three successful orbital deliveries before Virgin Orbit filed for bankruptcy in April 2023, ending the LauncherOne program. The aircraft represented a flexible, mobile launch platform approach that allowed launches from UK airspace (Spaceport Cornwall) as well as US west coast locations, though the UK mission failed to reach orbit.