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The crew behind an historic rocket launch from UK soil have vowed to bounce back after their highly anticipated space mission ended in failure.

LauncherOne suffered an “anomaly” in its bid to reach orbit on Monday night, after being carried skyward from Spaceport Cornwall by a converted jumbo jet named Cosmic Girl.

Relive UK’s historic space mission as it happened

There was raucous applause and cheering among the 2,000 lucky ticketholders in attendance in Newquay when the former Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747 took off just after 10pm.

The sound of The Rolling Stones’ Start Me Up – after which the mission was named – pumped out of several loudspeakers, drowning out the crowds.

But excitement turned to disappointment when launch operator Virgin Orbit revealed that the rocket had failed to deploy its payload of nine satellites.

“We appear to have an anomaly that has prevented us from reaching orbit,” it announced.

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“We are evaluating the information.”

What went wrong?

It is understood that LauncherOne encountered problems during its second stage after release from Cosmic Girl.

The rocket dropped from the aircraft 35,000ft above the Atlantic, off Ireland’s southern coast, just before 11.15pm.

The first stage – which sees the spacecraft burst into life after about four seconds before accelerating to more than 8,000 miles per hour – appeared to proceed accordingly.

A short while later, the second stage was supposed to eject the nine onboard satellites into orbit – and this is the vital moment where the as-yet-undefined “anomaly” is thought to have occurred.

Virgin Orbit reported the issue about half an hour after the rocket dropped from the plane.

The plane takes off ahead of Britain's first satellite launch, at Cornwall Airport Newquay, in Cornwall, Britain January 9, 2023. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls
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Cosmic Girl took off from Newquay at just gone 10pm

Matt Archer, from the UK Space Agency, said the precise cause was still under investigation.

“In effect, the rocket has not reached the required altitude to maintain its orbit or deploy the satellites,” he said.

The second stage needed to put the rocket some 500km above the Earth – its path would then have taken it to the opposite side of the planet, releasing the satellites in low orbit over Australia.

Mr Archer said the outcome was “obviously disappointing” and that an investigation would take place, involving the government and agencies including Virgin Orbit.

“We knew this had a risk of failure,” he added.

“Launches don’t always work. We’ll pick up with Virgin Orbit and think about what happens next.”

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‘Space is hard’: Crowds look on bright side after launch disappointment

A man and a child watch Britain's first satellite launch on a screen, at Cornwall Airport Newquay, in Cornwall, Britain January 9, 2023. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls
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Thousands of people were at the spaceport for the launch

‘We’re feeling awful – but we’ll go again’

Melissa Thorpe, the head of Spaceport Cornwall, which is the UK’s first licenced spaceport, admitted that there were “tears” when LauncherOne’s issue emerged.

“We’re feeling awful, to be honest – I’m not going to lie,” she said.

“It’s gutting, and we all heard at different times. When we got together, there were tears, and it was very upsetting.”

But she added: “This isn’t the first time we’ve been knocked.

“This is the biggest definitely, but I feel okay, and we’ll get up, and we’ll go again.”

Spaceport Cornwall has been earmarked as a major hub for future launches – Monday night’s should have been the first time satellites had ever been fired into space from Western Europe, let alone the UK.

But Ms Thorpe couldn’t confirm whether the spaceport would see another launch attempt in 2023.

In more positive news, Cosmic Girl did successfully land back in Newquay shortly before midnight, and was once again greeted with applause.

Cosmic Girl, a Virgin Boeing 747-400 aircraft sits on the tarmac with Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne rocket attached to the wing, ahead of the first UK launch tonight, at Spaceport Cornwall at Newquay Airport in Newquay, Britain, January 9, 2023. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls
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The somewhat surreal picture of a UK space launch being prepared

What kind of satellites were being deployed?

Unlike the large satellites taken into space by vertical rocket launches, like those carried out by NASA and SpaceX, Virgin Orbit was dealing with far smaller hardware.

Only about the size of a cereal box, the satellites were set to perform a range of tasks in space, such as maritime research and detecting illegal fishing and piracy, as well as national security.

They are also used for climate change observation.

Slowly but surely, Earth’s lower orbit is becoming much more crowded, as companies from Amazon to UK-based satellite company Iridium all hold a presence.

So too does Elon Musk’s satellite broadband company Starlink.

LauncherOne’s satellites would have played a key role for the UK, while the rocket itself was projected to burn up before landing in water back on Earth.

People watch Britain's first satellite launch on a screen, at Cornwall Airport Newquay, in Cornwall, Britain January 9, 2023. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls
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People came from far and wide to watch the launch – some brought deck chairs

‘A hollow victory’

While it failed to deploy its satellites, Start Me Up was still the first orbital rocket launch from UK soil.

However, Sky News science correspondent Thomas Moore said the “huge disappointment” of the mission’s finale could only be seen as a “hollow victory”.

“This […] once again proves that space is hard, and that however good our engineering, it can sometimes fail.”

In addition to the 2,000 people at the spaceport, the official livestream of the event peaked at 75,000 viewers – and 142,000 enthusiasts helped make Cosmic Girl the most-tracked aircraft on Flightradar24.

The sense of awe and excitement was palpable throughout and undeniable even given the heartache at the end.

“It’s been a big deal for Cornwall and a big deal for the airport,” one woman at the spaceport told Sky News.

“Fingers crossed for take two.”

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Storm Bert: Father rescues son from sinking car as floods wreak havoc

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Storm Bert: Father rescues son from sinking car as floods wreak havoc

Tragedy almost struck a family in West Yorkshire after a father had to suddenly rescue his 11-month-old son from their flooded car.

Andre Randles, 22, was driving with baby Luca from Hebden Bridge to his father’s home in Todmorden to watch a football match on Saturday afternoon.

He was diverted away from his main route when he hit a dip and went “straight into a puddle of water”.

Speaking to Sky’s Shingi Mararike, Mr Randles said he thought it was a shallow puddle that he could drive through but soon his car began to float.

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Paige and Andre
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Andre Randles’ partner Paige Newsome said the incident was ‘really scary’

He called emergency services but soon “water started seeping in”.

“I thought I’m going to have to get out, I’m going to have to smash a window,” Mr Randles said.

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He wound down his and his son’s windows, and climbed out before rescuing his son.

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‘Devastating’ flooding in Wales

“The water was chest high, I held him up as high as I could to keep him out of the water.”

“It wasn’t raining so heavily, I’ve driven in much worse rain,” he added.

Mr Randles, a self-employed roofer who relies on the car for work, said he remained calm during the ordeal and was helped by the fact that Luca was asleep during the rescue.

Mr Randles’ partner Paige Newsome – who was not in the car at the time – said the incident was “really scary”.

“To think I could have actually lost them both – I don’t know how I would’ve lived,” she said.

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Resident feels ‘abandoned’ in floods

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The road has been flooding for at least two decades, the couple said.

“What is it going to take for the council to sort it out? Does a fatal incident have to happen? It’s been going on for years,” Ms Newsome said.

The couple are worried about affording another car as well as Christmas celebrations.

But Mr Randles said: “I’m grateful that we got out safely and that we can spend his first birthday and Christmas as a family.”

Storm Bert has brought more than 80% of November’s average monthly rainfall in less than 48 hours to some parts, the Met Office said.

Around 300 flood warnings and alerts are in place in England, with another 100 in Wales and nine in Scotland, as heavy rain and thawing snow bring more disruption across the UK.

A major incident was declared by Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council in South Wales after homes and cars were submerged in water.

‘It is devastating’

Gareth Davies, who owns a garage in Pontypridd, a town in Rhondda Cynon Taf, told Sky’s Dan Whitehead that flooding has put his small business “back to square one”.

As the River Taff burst its banks, the majority of the vehicles in Mr Davis’s garage were so damaged he says they will have to be written off.

Garage in wales destroyed by Storm Bert
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Mr Davies speaking to Sky’s Dan Whitehead in his flooded garage

Garage in wales destroyed by Storm Bert

“I am gutted,” he said, standing in his flooded garage, most of which is also covered in oil after a drum tipped over.

“How long is it going to take to sort out? I am going to lose money either way. I can’t work on people’s cars when I am trying to sort all of this out.

“It is devastating.”

Mr Davies said he has never had an issue with water coming into his garage until now.

Garage in wales destroyed by Storm Bert

Pointing to one car that had been hoisted into the air before water reached it, he said: “Lucky enough, I did come in this morning just to get that car up in the air.

“I don’t know what to say, I have been working flat out for two years to build this up and something like this happens, and it just squashes it all.

“This has put me back to square one.”

At least two to three hundred properties in South Wales have been affected by flooding, Councillor Andrew Morgan, leader of Rhondda Cynon Taf Borough Council, said on Sunday.

He said the affected buildings are a mixture of residential and commercial properties, after the weather turned out to be worse than what was forecast.

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MP behind assisted dying bill says she has ‘no doubts’ – as she rejects minister’s ‘slippery slope’ claim

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MP behind assisted dying bill says she has 'no doubts' - as she rejects minister's 'slippery slope' claim

The Labour MP behind the assisted dying bill said she has “no doubts” about its safeguards after a minister warned it would lead to a “slippery slope” of “death on demand”.

Kim Leadbeater told Sky’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips that she has “huge respect” for Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood, but that she doesn’t agree with her opinion.

In a strongly worded intervention ahead of Friday’s House of Commons vote, Ms Mahmood said the state should “never offer death as a service”.

She said she was “profoundly concerned” by the legislation, not just for religious reasons, which she has previously expressed, but because it could create a “slippery slope towards death on demand”.

Asked about the criticism, Ms Leadbeater said: “I have got a huge amount of respect for Shabana. She’s a very good colleague and a good friend.

“In terms of the concept of a slippery slope, the title of the bill is very, very clear.

“It is called the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill. It cannot include anybody other than people who are terminally ill, with a number of months of their life left to live. It very clearly states that the bill will not cover anybody else other than people in that category.”

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Ms Leadbeater’s bill proposes legalising assisted dying for people with six months left to live, on the approval of two doctors and a High Court judge.

She wants people who are in immense pain to be given a choice to end their lives, and has included a provision in the legislation to make coercion a criminal offence.

The matter will be debated for the first time in almost 10 years on Friday, with MPs given a free vote, meaning they can side with their conscience and not party lines.

As a result, the government is meant to remain neutral, so the intervention of cabinet ministers has provoked some criticism from within party ranks.

Labour peer Charlie Falconer told Sky News Ms Mahmood’s remarks were “completely wrong” and suggested she was seeking to impose her religious beliefs on other people.

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Kevin Hollinrake says he will be in favour of the assisted dying bill

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Mum diagnosed with cancer tells of the day her life changed ahead of assisted dying vote

Why is assisted dying so controversial and where is it legal?

Asked about his comments, Ms Leadbeater said it was important to remain “respectful and compassionate throughout the debate” and “for the main part, that has been the case”.

She added: “The point about religion does come into this debate, we have to be honest about that. There are people who would never support a change in the law because of their religious beliefs.”

Ms Leadbeater went on to say she had “no doubts whatsoever” about the bill, which has also been objected by the likes of Health Secretary Wes Streeting and former Labour prime minister Gordon Brown.

Asked if she has ever worried about people who don’t want to die taking their own lives because of the legislation, Ms Leadbeater said: “No, I don’t have any doubts whatsoever. I wouldn’t have put the bill forward if I did.

“The safeguards in this bill will be the most robust in the world, and the layers and layers of safeguarding within the bill will make coercion a criminal offence.”

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Mum diagnosed with cancer tells of the day her life changed ahead of assisted dying vote

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Mum diagnosed with cancer tells of the day her life changed ahead of assisted dying vote

There is a lot at stake this week for Sophie Blake, a 52-year-old mother to a young adult, who was diagnosed with stage four cancer in May 2023.

As MPs vote on whether to change the law to allow assisted dying, Sophie tells Sky News of the day her life changed.

“One night I woke up and as I turned I felt a sensation of something in my breast actually move, and it was deep,” she says, speaking from her home in Brighton.

“Something fluidy, a very odd sensation. I woke up and made a doctor’s appointment.”

Sophie underwent an ultrasound followed by a biopsy before she was taken to a room in the clinic and offered water.

“They said, ‘a hundred percent, we believe you have breast cancer’.”

But it was the phone call with her mother that made it feel real.

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“My mum had been waiting at home. She phoned me and said ‘How is it darling?’ and I said ‘I’ve got breast cancer,’ and it was just that moment of having to say it out loud for the first time and that’s when that part of my life suddenly changed.”

Sophie says terminal cancers can leave patients dreading the thought of suffering at the end of their lives.

“What I don’t want to be is in pain,” she says. “If I am facing an earlier death than I wanted then I want to be able to take control at the end.”

Assisted dying, she believes, gives her control: “It’s an insurance policy to have that there.”

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Why is assisted dying so controversial and where is it legal?
UK on ‘slippery slope’ Justice Minister says ahead of vote

On Friday, the government is set to debate the issue before voting on it. Sophie hopes they’ll back the proposal.

“It should be my choice to be able to have a compassionate death,” she says.

There has been much debate about the bill since details about how it would work were published earlier this month.

On Friday, former prime minister Gordon Brown became the latest senior political figure to share his opinion on the matter, coming out as against the legalisation of assisted dying, based on his experience of his own daughter’s death.

Disability rights advocate Lucy Webster warns that for people like Sophie to have that choice, others could face pressure to die.

Lucy Webster, disability rights advocate
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Lucy Webster

“All around the world, if you look at places where the bill has been introduced, they’ve been broadened and broadened and broadened,” she tells Sky News.

Lucy is referring to countries like Canada and Netherlands, where eligibility for assisted deaths have widened since laws allowing it were first passed.

Lucy, who is a wheelchair user and requires a lot of care, says society still sees disabled people as burdens which places them at particular risk.

“I don’t know a single disabled person who has not at some point had a stranger come up to us and say, ‘if I were you, I’d kill myself’,” she says.

The assisted dying bill, she says, reinforces the view that disabled lives aren’t worth living.

“I’ve definitely had doctors and healthcare professionals assume that my quality of life is inherently worse than other people’s. That’s a horrible assumption to be faced with when [for example] you’ve just gone to get antibiotics for a chest infection. There are some really deep-seated medical views on disability that are wrong.”

Under the plans, a person would need to be terminally ill and in the final six months of their life, and would have to take the fatal drugs themselves.

Among the safeguards are that two independent doctors must confirm a patient is eligible for assisted dying and that a High Court judge must give their approval. But the bill does not make clear if that is a rubber-stamping exercise or if judges will have to investigate cases including risks of coercion.

Julian Hughes, honorary professor at Bristol Medical School, says there’s a very big question about whether courts have the room to take on such a task.

Julian Hughes, honorary professor at Bristol Medical School
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Julian Hughes

“At the moment in the family division I understand there are 19 judges and they supply 19,000 hours of court hearing in a year, but you’d have to have an extra 34,000,” he explains.

“We shouldn’t fool ourselves and think that there wouldn’t be some families who would be interested in getting the inheritance rather than spending the inheritance on care for their elderly family members. We could quickly become a society in which suicide becomes normalised.”

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