SpaceX launches more Starlink internet satellites from Cape Canaveral
Follow live as SpaceX targets 3:21 p.m. EDT Friday, Aug. 19, for the launch of a Falcon 9 rocket and batch of Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
Today's flight marks the 57th for the internet constellation and Florida's 36th of the year. After liftoff, Falcon 9 will target a landing on the Shortfall of Gravitas drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket shot off its Florida pad with yet another batch of Starlink internet satellites Friday afternoon, setting the stage for what could be just one more launch before NASA's big show late this month.
The 3:21 p.m. liftoff from Launch Complex 40 marked the 57th Starlink mission for the SpaceX constellation of internet satellites operating in low-Earth orbit. The company confirmed successful separation of the 53 spacecraft about 15 minutes after liftoff.
In between, the rocket's 162-foot first stage successfully landed on the "Shortfall of Gravitas" drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean, completing its ninth flight so far. Overall, the Space Coast has hosted 36 launches in 2022; of those, exactly half have been dedicated Starlink missions.
If everything goes according to plan, SpaceX could fly one more time before a massive NASA moon rocket named the Space Launch Systemblasts off from Kennedy Space Center toward the end of this month. As it stands, the company is eyeing the night of Saturday, Aug. 27, for another Starlink batch.
Quelle: Florida Today
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SpaceX launches 53 more Starlink satellites, lands rocket at sea again
In a fun coincidence, liftoff occurred today (Aug. 19) at 3:21 p.m. ET.
SpaceX launched another big batch of its Starlink internet satellites to orbit today (Aug. 19) and also aced a rocket landing at sea.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying 53 Starlink spacecraft lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida today at, appropriately enough, 3:21 p.m. EDT (1921 GMT).
About nine minutes into the mission, the Falcon 9's first stage came back to Earth for a vertical touchdown on the SpaceX droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas, which was stationed in the Atlantic Ocean off the Florida coast.
It was the ninth launch and landing for this particular Falcon 9 first stage, according to a SpaceX mission description(opens in new tab).
The rocket's upper stage, meanwhile, continued its way upward, eventually deploying the 53 satellites into low Earth orbit as planned a little over 15 minutes after launch, SpaceX confirmed via Twitter(opens in new tab).
SpaceX has already launched more than 3,000 spacecraft for its Starlink constellation, which beams broadband service to customers around the globe.
Many of those satellites have gone up this year. SpaceX has now performed 37 orbital launches in 2022 so far, 23 of them dedicated Starlink missions. That's a record-breaking launch cadence; the company's previous mark for most orbital missions in a year was 31, set in 2021.
Today's Starlink launch occurred just a few hours after one of SpaceX's robotic Dragon cargo capsules departed the International Space Station. The Dragon is expected to return to Earth with an ocean splashdown tomorrow afternoon (Aug. 20).
