27.04.2024
SpaceX eyes another launch double-header from Cape Canaveral this weekend
Just over a week after the last back-to-back days of launches, SpaceX is aiming for a repeat.
On the evenings of both Wednesday and Thursday of last week, SpaceX launched Starlink satellites into orbit, adding to the quickly growing number of Florida rocket launches for the year.
According to National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency navigational warnings, SpaceX plans two upcoming rocket launches within a 24-hour time span. The first launch is expected Saturday, April 27, with another launch on Sunday, April 28. These launches will bring the Florida yearly total to 32. Earlier in the year, Florida Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez predicted the Space Coast would see over 111 rocket launchesduring a speech at SpaceCom. This would break the record of 72 launches, which Florida saw last year.
The following day, Sunday, will see the launch of another batch of Starlink satellites. The Starlink satellites are an addition to the ever-growing Starlink satellite constellation which delivers internet around the globe.
The launch window is stated to open at 5:50 p.m. and extends until 10:21 p.m. Occurring from Space Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, the launch will follow the traditional Southeast trajectory of Starlink launches. Local sonic booms are not expected, as the Falcon 9 will land out on a SpaceX drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. SpaceX has yet to confirm this launch.
Quelle: Florida Today
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Update: 30.04.2024
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SpaceX launches 23 Starlink satellites from Florida
Liftoff occurred at 6:08 p.m. ET on Sunday (April 28).
SpaceX launched 23 more of its Starlink internet satellites to orbit on Sunday evening (April 28).
The Starlink spacecraft lifted off atop a Falcon 9 rocket from Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 6:08 p.m. EDT (2208 GMT).
To plan, the Falcon 9's first stage came back to Earth for a vertical landing about 8.5 minutes after launch. It touched down on the droneship Just Read the Instructions, which was stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.
It was the 13th launch and landing for the booster, according to a SpaceX mission description. Half of the rocket's previous 12 flights were Starlink missions.
The Falcon 9's upper stage, meanwhile, is set to deploy the 23 Starlink satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO) about 65 minutes after liftoff.
Sunday's launch was part of a busy weekend for SpaceX. The company launched two of Europe's Galileo navigation satellites on Saturday (April 27). The liftoff was the 20th for that Falcon 9's first stage, tying a SpaceX reuse record.
SpaceX's 30th robotic Dragon cargo mission to the International Space Stationfor NASA was wrapping up on Sunday as well. The company's Dragon capsule departed the orbiting lab at around 1:10 p.m. EDT (1710 GMT), bringing scientific samples and experiments down to Earth.
Quelle: SC