What next as UK’s first space mission ends in failure?

For the first time – we were told – a mission launched from British soil would see a rocket slip the surly bonds of Earth – or, to be more precise, Cornwall.

But an ‘anomaly’ following the launch at Newquay Airport last night saw Virgin Orbit’s cargo of satellites burn up in the atmosphere somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean, and with it – perhaps – the notion of the UK becoming a major player in the new space race any time soon.