Space / Parts of first rocket launched from Unst expected to splash down east of Iceland
PARTS of the first rocket due to launch from SaxaVord Spaceport later this year are expected to splash down into waters to the east of Iceland.
However maritime activity in the launch warning zone is said to be “extremely low” compared to its size.
Launch operator Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) is hoping to take off from the spaceport in Unst some time after 1 July. It would be the first vertical rocket launch in the UK.
Marine licence documents submitted by RFA give an insight into what impact there could be in the seas north of Shetland.
Two sections of the rocket are expected to fall back to earth into the sea – the “first stage” and the “fairing”.
The first stage is a part of the rocket that will be discarded to shed weight once its fuel has been used up.
The fairing is essentially the rocket nose cone which protects instruments and satellite payloads, but once it is at a certain altitude it becomes redundant.
Both of these parts will be discarded into what is called the Nordic Sea Hazard Area between Shetland and Jan Mayen Island – an uninhabited island located to the north of Iceland and to the east of Greenland.
It is expected that these parts will “quickly sink” after hitting water.
However there is a warning that the fairing may fragment whilst returning to Earth, leading to debris entering the marine environment.
There is no recovery planned for the parts, because this would be an “expensive and hazardous operation involving specialised equipment, aircraft and multiple sea craft, personnel and logistics”.
RFA added in its marine licence documents: “The stages will impact at a minimum distance of 12 nautical miles from the nearest coastline.
“It is therefore very unlikely that there will be a justified demand from the public to remove the debris once the environmental benefits of such artificial reef have been communicated.”
RFA said a “comprehensive examination” of maritime activity was conducted between 2021 and 2024.
The so-called RFA launch warning zone, which spans from Unst to north east of Iceland, covers 108,000nm².
The highest volume of ships in this period are cargo/tanker vessels, followed by fishing boats.
But the overall activity is said to be very low for the size of the area, with a four-year annual average of 4.2 vessels a day in the entire launch warning zone.
However there is a warning that more fishing boats heading there during the peak mackerel and herring seasons “may increase the risk to exceed beyond what is tolerable to undertake launch operations without appropriate control measures”.
Notifications will also be issued which will advise mariners of the launch window and “likelihood of freefalling debris” as a result of the launch operations.
The documents also note there is a ‘memoranda of understanding’ in place between the UK Government and the governments of the Faroe Islands and Iceland.
Under these conditions RFA will make “all reasonable efforts” to avoid launch debris falling within the territory of Iceland.
Notices to aviators or mariners will be issued to the governments of Faroe and Iceland, while on the day of launch RFA will monitor maritime traffic information to ensure that no fishing activity within the territories of Faroe is placed at significant risk.
There are also said to be intergovernmental agreements that there should be no dropped debris within 12 nautical miles of the coasts of both Jan Mayen and Norway.
Meanwhile a navigational risk document for SaxaVord from September last year highlights how the spaceport’s ‘area of interest’ (AOI) to the north of Shetland is coming “increasingly more strategically important” due to more Russian naval activity.
It adds: “The Russian Northern Fleet must use the Greenland-UK Gap (GIUK), or the North Sea to transit to the Atlantic Ocean. As an example, in October 2019, ten submarines of Russia’s Northern Fleet left their home bases in Kola Peninsula to participate in operations in the Atlantic.
“The main task of this operation was reportedly testing Russian ability to breach the GIUK gap undetected and sail into the Atlantic Ocean.
“In response NATO naval activity has increased in the AOI in the last five years, predominantly submarine operations.”
Become a member of Shetland News
Shetland News is asking its readers to consider paying for membership to get additional perks:
- Removal of third-party ads;
- Bookmark posts to read later;
- Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
- Hide membership messages;
- Comments open for discussion.
If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a member of Shetland News by either making a single payment, or setting up a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription.
Already a member? Sign in to hide this message.
