Isar Aerospace's Spectrum launch vehicle has carried satellites into orbit from Andøya Spaceport in Norway. The civil and commercial launch was observed on site by a Norwegian officer from NATO's space component.
According to a press release from NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), Spectrum lifted off as part of the Onward and Upward mission at 22:12 Central European Summer Time. The rocket passed the Kármán line, separated its stages and subsequently placed the payloads into orbit.
NATO describes the flight as the first time a European commercial space company has successfully placed satellites into orbit. The launch expands Europe's launch capacity and creates an additional route to space from the European continent.
Lieutenant Colonel Jørgen Tovsrud, who serves at NATO's Space Theatre Component in Ramstein, Germany, was launch director for the mission.
"This launch is significant because NATO's resilience in space is closely linked to the strength of the broader space ecosystem," says Tovsrud.
NATO emphasises that the alliance does not intend to become an independent space actor or develop its own space capabilities. Instead, it relies on capabilities, data, products and services from member states as well as a resilient civil and private sector.
Space was recognised as an operational domain by NATO in 2019 and supports, among other things, communication, navigation, tracking, detection and situational awareness.