German start-up's historic rocket test launch delayed due to weather

A historic test flight of an orbital launch vehicle by German space start-up Isar Aerospace was delayed due to adverse weather conditions in northern Norway on Monday.

According to Joseph Aschbacher, the director general of the European Space Agency (ESA), the test was due to mark "the first commercial orbital launch from mainland Europe."

The company's Spectrum launch vehicle had been set to take off from the Andøya spaceport on Monday, but the test was pushed back due to high winds.

The Munich-based company said it would announce a timeline for the next attempted launch when a plan is in place.

Its rocket was not expected to reach orbit, with a company spokeswoman warning that no company has ever managed to achieve space flight in a first test.

"The rocket may explode - that is even likely during the test flight," she said. "Thirty seconds would be a great success."

Isar Aerospace, founded in 2018, is seeking to develop a viable launch vehicle to carry satellites to orbit.

It is a European rival to Elon Musk's SpaceX and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin.

Europe is currently lagging the United States, China and India in space travel, amid delays in the development of the ESA's Ariane 6 launcher.

The Spectrum launch vehicle is 28 metres long, with a diameter of 2 metres.

Depending on the desired orbit, it can carry a payload of between 700 and 1,000 kilograms to space.

If it carries out a successful test, Isar could ramp up production, with two further rockets already being built.

"How quickly they will be on the launchpad also depends on the results of the first test flight - and whether only software or hardware adjustments need to be made," said the spokeswoman. "In any case, our goal is to be back on the launchpad as quickly as possible."

Isar Aerospace envisions building up to 40 launch vehicles per year.

The firm has so far raised more than €400 million ($433 million) in capital.

The NATO Innovation Fund, a venture capital fund supported by 24 NATO member states, was among the participants in the latest financing round.