Isar Aerospace, based in Germany, is the first in a crop of new European rocket companies to attempt an orbital launch. If all went according to plan, Isar's Spectrum rocket would have arced to the north from Andøya Spaceport in Norway and reached a polar orbit.

The first orbital rocket launched from Europe crashed less than a minute after it was launched Sunday, but operators still considered the mission a success.

German startup Isar Aerospace has successfully launched its Spectrum rocket from Norway, boosting Europe’s independent access to space.