A British space firm is seeking new interns as it ramps up towards delivering the first vertical rocket launch from UK soil. Orbex is looking to take on up to a dozen new recruits — as part of its largest internship programme to date — with recruitment beginning next month. Later this year, the firm will be launching its 62-feet-tall “Prime” rocket from the Sutherland Spaceport in Scotland, aiming to beat competitor Skyrora to achieve the first successful launch from the British mainland, following the failure of Virgin Orbit earlier this year.

Orbex’s head of talent acquisition, Elliot Doyle, added: “The first vertical launch from the UK mainland will be a landmark moment, one that we hope new and existing interns will be able to play a part in delivering.

“It’s a remarkable opportunity to learn from our experienced team […] while working on projects which will have a hand shaping the future of sustainable orbital spaceflight.

“While we, like many others, are eagerly anticipating the launch of Prime, our focus remains on the broader objective of creating a sustainable, dependable and financially viable route to space for our growing number of satellite clients.

“The first launch is just the beginning, but what a beginning to be a part of.”

For its upcoming crop of interns, Orbex is offering placements across the company, including in the administration, assembly integration and test, avionics, guidance, navigation and control, marketing, propulsion mechanisms, software, structures, structures, and systems engineering teams.

Staff members with whom the interns will work have professional backgrounds that include time spent at NASA, the European Space Agency and various other commercial spaceflight organisations.

Orbex unveiled its Prime “microlauncher” rocket to the European space community back in the May of last year.

Prime, they have explained, will offer a dedicated launch service for satellite manufacturers and operators — with several already having contracted Orbex to ferry their craft into orbit.

Orbex says that delivering spaceflight as sustainably as possible continues to be a top priority for the firm.

They added: “The reusable Prime rocket has been engineered to leave zero debris on Earth and in orbit, and is fuelled by a renewable form of propane.

“Prime launches have a carbon footprint up to 96 percent lower than launches from similarly sized vehicles relying on traditional fossil fuels.”

Sutherland Spaceport, they added, “is being built by Orbex with sustainability in mind and is intended to be the first spaceport globally to be carbon-neutral in its construction and operation.”

DON’T MISS:
Impact study on near-death experiences confounds expectations[REPORT]
Four checks you should make before installing a heat pump[INSIGHT]
Egypt mystery solved after animal mummies found in ‘sealed coffins’[ANALYSIS]

Racing to beat Orbex into space is the Edinburgh-based private space company, Skyrora, who plan to launch their three-stage-to-orbit Skyrora XL rocket from the SaxaVord Spaceport on the Lamba Ness peninsula of Unst, in the Shetland Islands.

Skyrora Business Operations Manager Derek Harris said: “Skyrora plans to launch the first British-built rocket from UK soil as early as the end of this year.”

He added: “Following the key milestones of 2022, such as our successful 70kN engine test and the second stage static fire test of our flagship orbital rocket, Skyrora XL, we have entered 2023 in a great position.”

In October last year, the firm undertook a launch of the suborbital Skylark L rocket from Langanes, Iceland, in order to test some of the processes and components that will be used for the orbital launch of Skyrora XL near the end of this year.

Unfortunately, after blasting off from the launch pad, a “software-related anomaly” cut the rocket’s maiden flight short with it landing harmlessly in the sea some 1,600 feet from the launch pad.

In a statement, the firm said: “As Skyrora approaches launch at the end of 2023, the demonstrator launch of Skylark L enabled the team to test 70 percent of the technology which will be applied to the systems of the Skyrora XL vehicle, providing a key incremental learning opportunity to increase technological readiness.

“The team is already preparing for future launches of Skylark L to establish the launch heritage key to reaching orbit.”

Source: Read Full Article