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Two small launch companies that reached orbit but could not sustain their first rockets: Virgin Orbit went bankrupt in 2023, while Astra went private in 2024 and is building a new rocket.
| Metric | Astra Space | Virgin Orbit |
|---|---|---|
| Founded[2,5] | October 2016 as Astra (predecessor Ventions, from 2005) | March 2, 2017, as a spin-off of Virgin Galactic |
| Headquarters[1,5] | Alameda, CA | Long Beach, CA |
| Founder(s)[1,5] | Chris Kemp, Adam London | Richard Branson's Virgin Group (spun off from Virgin Galactic) |
| Launch Vehicle[3,4,6] | Rocket 3 (retired after June 2022); Rocket 4 in development | LauncherOne (retired), air-launched from the 747 "Cosmic Girl" |
| Launch Method[3,5] | Vertical ground launch | Air launch from a modified Boeing 747-400 |
| Payload Capacity[3,6] | Rocket 3: 20 to 50 kg to a 500 km sun-synchronous orbit | LauncherOne: 500 kg to a 230 km LEO; 300 kg to a 500 km sun-synchronous orbit |
| Orbital Launch Record[3,6] | Rocket 3: 2 successes in 7 launches (LV0007, Nov 2021; LV0009, Mar 2022) | LauncherOne: 4 successes in 6 launches (May 2020 to Jan 2023) |
| Notable Failures[3,5,6] | June 2022 launch lost two NASA TROPICS satellites; Astra ended Rocket 3 in August 2022 | Maiden flight (May 2020) and the first UK launch, from Spaceport Cornwall (Jan 9, 2023) |
| Public Listing[1,2,5] | Nasdaq (ASTR) via SPAC merger with Holicity in 2021; taken private July 18, 2024 | Nasdaq (VORB) via SPAC merger with NextGen Acquisition, Dec 30, 2021; quoted as VORBQ after bankruptcy |
| Status (Oct 2026)[1,4,5] | Private; sells spacecraft engines and is developing Rocket 4 (first launch targeted for 2026 as of Nov 2025) | Defunct: suspended operations March 2023, Chapter 11 filed April 4, 2023 |
| Private funding on record | $165M raised privately | No private funding figure on record |
| Customers (examples)[3,5,6] | NASA (TROPICS), U.S. Space Force (STP-27AD1 and STP-27AD2 test missions) | NASA (ELaNa 20, Jan 2021); U.S. Space Force via VOX Space (first of three launches, July 2022) |
| Bankruptcy / Shutdown[1,5] | No bankruptcy; co-founders took Astra private in July 2024 at $0.50 a share | Chapter 11 filed April 4, 2023; assets auctioned in May 2023 |
| What Happened to the Assets[2,5] | Kept: spacecraft engine line (from the 2021 Apollo Fusion acquisition) still sold | Rocket Lab bought the Long Beach factory and tooling ($16M), Launcher the Mojave test site ($3M), Stratolaunch the Cosmic Girl 747 ($17M); Firefly bought remaining assets ($3.8M) |
Figures as of Feb 9, 2026 (auto-updated daily from company profiles). Information only, not investment advice. Full disclaimer
Both companies showed that reaching orbit is only the first milestone. Astra went public through a SPAC merger in 2021; its Rocket 3 reached orbit twice in seven launches, and after the June 2022 loss of two NASA TROPICS satellites it ended Rocket 3 and moved to a larger design, Rocket 4. It now sells spacecraft engines and was taken private by its co-founders in July 2024. Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne reached orbit four times in six launches, but after its January 2023 launch from Cornwall failed and new funding did not come, it suspended operations in March 2023 and filed for Chapter 11 on April 4, 2023; its factory, test site and 747 were auctioned in May 2023.[1,3,5,6]
The two cases differ. Astra's problem was reliability: five of its seven Rocket 3 launches failed, each traced to a different system. Virgin Orbit flew more reliably but ran out of money: when it went public in December 2021 it raised $228 million, less than half the $483 million it had expected. Astra survived by shrinking and selling thrusters, and says Rocket 4 is funded by those sales.[3,4,5]
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