Virgin Galactic to Launch from Scottish Base?

Lancey writes "The BBC reports that Richard Branson wants to launch Virgin Galactic space flights from a Royal Air Force base in Moray, Scotland, as early as 2010." From the article: "We are designing it so that we will be able to tour it around the world. So we will have a main base in New Mexico and we are looking at three bases outside there to be able to operate from."

Comments

What about the equator?

[LotsOfPhil]

I thought that it was better to launch things from the equator. Something about angular momentum, maybe? This is (I thought) why the ESA launches from Equatorial Guinea, or some such.

Re:What about the equator?

[Anonymous Coward]

ESA launches from French Guiana. Actually.

Re:What about the equator?

[tgd]

Thats only if you're going to try to get into orbit easily.

They're not trying to get into orbit.

Re:What about the equator?

[badfish99]

... and then falls right back down.

Yes, that sounds about right. It's what I'd expect to happen to a spaceship run by the same company that runs Virgin trains.

Re:What about the equator?

[Rincewind42]

The equator is useful for launching. But what goes up must come down. You need to land as well as take off. There are rumors that NASA designated Machrihanish airport as an emergency landing site for the Shuttle. Though never used for that purpose to date. Machrihanish is over 3km long and remote from populations. Lossiemouth would have similar advantages with the addition of up to date modern facilities.

Contrary to popular conceptions, the North East of Scotland actually enjoys quite good weather most of the year round. It's only the west of Scotland that gets really heavy rain. Ref: Met Office map of UK average rainfall

Lead - engineer

[thrill12]

... will probably be Scotty:
"Aye Cap'n Branson, but she can't take much more !"

I hope their ship is rainproof

[aadvancedGIR]

With 450+ days of rain each year up there, a shuttle could never do that.
If you add the latitude consideration and the possibility to organize flights for tourists, Spain or Moroco would seem a better idea.

Re:I hope their ship is rainproof

[tehgimpness]

What planet are you from that has 450 days per year?

It's part of an EU directive to ensure effective and fair distribution of rainfall in the europe. Each country has a number of rainfall tokens which are spent on rainfall per annum. Scotland import the rainfall by accepting rainfall tokens from other european countries to ensure that the rainfall exporters have more sunshine throughout the year. Italy and Greece are europes chief exporters. The UK and Poland are nett importers. England and Wales have 279 days of rainfall a year and have accepted 23 'grey skies and light showers' and 9 'fog' days from mainland europe in return for preferential North Sea fishing areas.

Re:I hope their ship is rainproof

[Wizard Drongo]

The truly sad thing is, it takes one a minute or so to digest the above comment and realise it is in fact a joke and not actually true. That's how bad the EU can be. We're talking about the drones that actually put down on the books a statue on how bendy a banana has to be before it's eligible to be sold.

Re:I hope their ship is rainproof

[Wizard Drongo]

Whoops, my bad. My standing as a slashdot grammar Nazi may suffer due to this, but I do avow that the misspelling in question is because my Apple iMac tangerine keyboard is a fair few years old, and whist I have a spiffy new MacBook, with a spiffy new keyboard on it, when at my desk, the old tangerine gets a hammering. Probably due for a replacement. Some of the hammers don't always connect, even if my fingers hit the key. You're right to a degree on the minimal standards. But the EU's bureaucracy is well known. A lot of their regulations exist solely because certain failed politicians who get sent to the EC as an easy-life 'reward', wish to have a legacy, and see easily voted-in pointless legislation as their ticket into the history books. See Neil "Babies? Love 'em. Vote for Me! Terrorists? Lovely, Vote for Me!" Kinnock and his wife, Ugly as an example of the EU gravy train and it's embarrassing catalogue of legislative mistakes.

Nothing to see...

[HaydnH]

Nothing to see here... no really! It's a broken link! Here's a working link to the article.

Strange headline

[biglig2]

The interesting thing is that he intends to launch in 2010, not so much that he's going to run it out of Scotland. I mean, he was likely to have at least one launch point in the UK if it was technically feasable, and it was never likely to be Heathrow. ;-)

Lossiemouth is the perfect location!

[dnnrly]

I've been to good ol' Lossie. I think it's perfect! Takeoffs would occur over the bay which opens up to the North Sea. Lossiemouth itself isn't hugely populated but it does lie next door to the base. There is a housing estate right up to the fence on one side (with the local pub about 1 mile from the main entrance), all other sides are clear and the nearest large town is Elgin about 10 miles away.

As long as they are careful to take off and land over the water I can't see many problems at all.

Re:Lossiemouth is the perfect location!

[applemacmad]

Personally I wouldn't like a rocket taking off from across my garden fence (the base is on the other side of the road). Local pub? I would say there are at least 7!

But...

[Clazzy]

Think of the poor haggis! The shock of a rocket launching could tip them over and they'll roll down the hills, killing thousands! This injustice cannot be allowed to happen!