NewsCalifornia News

Actions

1st test launch by Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit postponed

Virgin Orbit
Posted
and last updated

MOJAVE, Calif. — (AP) — Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit has postponed its first space launch due to a technical problem. The flight was supposed to have happened Sunday but a sensor began acting up. The company has a backup launch window available on Monday.

Virgin Orbit’s rocket is carried beneath the wing of a Boeing 747 that will take off from Mojave Air and Space Port in the desert north of Los Angeles and fly out over the Pacific Ocean. The rocket will be released and its motor will ignite a few seconds later to propel a dummy satellite into low Earth orbit.

,

Weather

Daily Forecast

View Hourly Forecast

Day

Conditions

HI / LO

Precip

Friday

12/19/2025

Partly Cloudy

58° / 47°

3%

Saturday

12/20/2025

Partly Cloudy

63° / 50°

8%

Sunday

12/21/2025

Mostly Cloudy

63° / 49°

5%

Monday

12/22/2025

Cloudy

59° / 48°

5%

Tuesday

12/23/2025

Mostly Cloudy

63° / 56°

6%

Wednesday

12/24/2025

Rain

59° / 54°

82%

Thursday

12/25/2025

Rain

58° / 52°

64%

Friday

12/26/2025

Showers

54° / 48°

44%