There are no customer satellites aboard the first Spectrum test flight. The rocket will climb into a polar orbit from Andøya Spaceport in northern Norway, but Isar hasn't published a launch timeline or the exact parameters of the target orbit.

A test rocket aimed at kick-starting satellite launches from Europe fell to the ground and exploded 40 seconds after its launch from a Norwegian space port.

Isar Aerospace, which had warned that the initial launch could end prematurely, said the test produced extensive data that its team can learn from.