Space flights and satellite launches can now “blast off” from UK soil after new regulations came into force, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has announced. The rules provide a framework to regulate the space industry and will unlock “a potential £4 billion ($5.58 billion) of market opportunities over the next decade,” according to the Department for Transport (DfT). The first launch is expected to take place next year. It would be the first time a spacecraft or satellite has taken off from a European country, the DfT said. Many European companies currently launch from a site in French Guiana, South America. Proposed locations for UK spaceports are Newquay in Cornwall, Snowdonia in North Wales, and the Western Isles, Glasgow, Machrihanish, Sutherland, and Shetland, all in Scotland. It is hoped the UK space industry will launch satellites to improve satnav systems, and boost the monitoring of weather patterns and climate change. Space …