THE only British rocket to successfully make it into space has been unveiled in Midlothian after spending almost 50 years gathering dust in the Australian Outback.
A six-metre section of the Black Arrow rocket travelled a marathon 10,000 miles back home via boat and land to be displayed in Scotland after it crash-landed in South Australia 48 years ago.
The Black Arrow programme completed four rockets between 1969 and 1971, with the third flight marking the first and only successful UK-led orbital launch.
The rocket was unveiled by two of the engineers who worked on Black Arrow’s creation over 50 years ago and who forged careers within the space industry.
Key industry figures also spoke at the unveiling, including Mike Taylor, Markets and international programme director at the UK Space Agency, as well as air vice-marshal Simon Rochelle of the Royal Air Force and leading Black Arrow expert at the London Science Museum, Doug Millard.
Derek Mack, one of the engineers who worked on Black Arrow’s construction in the late 1960s said: “The last time I saw this rocket, I was standing only metres away from the launchpad, watching it gently lift off into orbit.
“So seeing it now, it’s just like greeting an old friend.”
The rocket, which is being exhibited in a storage facility in Penicuik, was returned by Edinburgh space company Skyrora to be used for educational purposes. It had previously been on display at William Creek in Australia, exposed to harsh elements and vandalised.
Skyrora director Daniel Smith said: “With the UK government’s aim to make us a launch nation again, it seemed like the perfect time to bring Black Arrow back.
“We hope it’s a reminder not only to our own team, but to everyone that’s part of the new commercial space race of what’s been accomplished before.
“It has been some journey – we wouldn’t have been able to do it without the support of the William Creek Progress Association and the Australian Government, so we’re extremely grateful to both.
“We really hope the rocket will help to inspire current and future generations of scientists and engineers.”
In July last year the UK Space Agency announced £2.5 million of funding for a proposed vertical launch spaceport in Sutherland.
Skyrora’s next planned rocket launches, Skylark Micro and SkyHy, will allow its team to gain more valuable launch experience, with the latter capable of reaching the edge of space, a feat never accomplished by a private company launching from the UK before.
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