UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site

Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by delibes on Monday July 16, 2018 @07:44PM (#17546124)

On the plus side, it's remote.

But it's hard to get my satellite there, and the weather there doesn't seem ideal for launching rockets.

I'd expect the east of the UK to be better for both access and available launch dates. Perhaps air traffic corridors are a problem.

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by falsedan on Monday July 16, 2018 @07:56PM (#17546185)

> it's hard to get my satellite there

Pretty sure if your satellite doesn't fit on the back of a lorry you're going to have a hard time launching it from anywhere. What does this even mean

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by tintor on Monday July 16, 2018 @08:07PM (#17546244)

As long as spaceport is by the sea you can ship your satellite to it.

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by benwilber0 on Monday July 16, 2018 @08:10PM (#17546256)

wait a second. can I launch my own satellite into outer space?

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by toomanybeersies on Monday July 16, 2018 @09:32PM (#17546638)

For the low price of only $80,000, you can launch your own 1U cubesat with Rocket Lab [1]. For that price, you can launch a 10x10x10cm satellite, with a maximum weight of 1.3 kg, into a 500 km sun synchronous orbit.

[1] https://www.rocketlabusa.com/book-my-launch/

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by matte_black on Monday July 16, 2018 @10:53PM (#17546945)

How long would a satellite like that last before being destroyed?

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by ridgeguy on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @01:24AM (#17547501)

Well, it's complicated, but maybe 25 years.

Here's a reference that's totally on point:

http://mstl.atl.calpoly.edu/~bklofas/Presentations/Developer...

"An Evaluation of CubeSat Orbital Decay" - everything you wanted to know (and more!) about the topic.

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by ChuckMcM on Monday July 16, 2018 @08:19PM (#17546294)

Absolutely, it just costs money.

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by pjc50 on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @06:58AM (#17548748)

Can't find a reference now, but apparently there's a "weather hole" over the area that gives it unusually high number of clear days. Related to the North Atlantic Current.

It's also handy for satellites constructed in Glasgow by ClydeSpace and others: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/38804310 "In the last two years Glasgow has built more satellites than any other city in Europe".

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by walshemj on Monday July 16, 2018 @07:54PM (#17546174)

I would assume that its for specific orbits - Ascension Island would make a better site for traditional launches.

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by delibes on Monday July 16, 2018 @08:13PM (#17546273)

Yep, I agree Scotland is fine for polar and sun-synchronous orbits.

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by DmenshunlAnlsis on Monday July 16, 2018 @07:57PM (#17546192)

I wonder if they’re also thinking about the future of suborbital transport? It seems distant to me, but it might play into the investment if they think this could be the Heathrow of suborbital transit in the future.

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by JumpCrisscross on Monday July 16, 2018 @09:01PM (#17546492)

Heathrow would be the Heathrowof civilian suborbital transit.

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by isostatic on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @09:50AM (#17549701)

Possibly, Heathrow is pretty crowded, but somewhere within half an hour of London yes. A site on HS2, preferably in the most NIMBYest area, would be good.

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by toomanybeersies on Monday July 16, 2018 @09:46PM (#17546681)

I don't think the northern tip of Scotland is the best place to put a suborbital transport facility.

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by gerdesj on Monday July 16, 2018 @09:26PM (#17546601)

Have you ever tried to drive a lorry with a satellite on it from here to Ascension? (It's a tricky road - lol!)

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by isostatic on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @09:48AM (#17549684)

If you can't afford to fly it to Ascension, you can't afford to launch it.

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by toomanybeersies on Monday July 16, 2018 @09:40PM (#17546669)

They're planning on launching Electron rockets from the site, which have a payload of 150–225 kg.

You could fit that kind of payload in the boot of your car.

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Re:UK spaceport proposed for Sutherland site by m-i-l on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @01:56AM (#17547598)

> On the plus side, it's remote.

It is actually relatively accessible compared to the other two proposed spaceport sites, which are both on relatively remote islands: Unst on the Shetland Islands, and North Uist in the Outer Hebrides Islands[0].

[0] http://www.shetlandtimes.co.uk/2018/07/16/unst-spaceport-sti...

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