SpaceX successfully launched its Falcon 9 rocket carrying 22 Starlink internet satellites from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Friday night. The launch was the fifth flight for the reusable booster, which landed on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean.
Starlink mission delayed by weather
The Starlink 6-16 mission was originally scheduled to launch on Thursday night, but was postponed due to unfavorable weather conditions. SpaceX announced the delay on X (formerly Twitter), saying that the team was “standing down from today’s Starlink launch due to weather in the recovery area.” The recovery area refers to the location where the first stage of the Falcon 9 rocket lands on a floating platform called Just Read the Instructions.
The launch window for Friday night opened at 11:12 p.m. EDT and closed at 1:02 a.m. EDT on Saturday morning. The weather forecast from the Space Force’s 45th Weather Squadron was 65% favorable for launch, with some isolated showers and storms expected over the interior of Florida. The recovery conditions for the drone ship were also moderate risk, as Hurricane Lee continued to churn far off the coast of Florida as a Category 3 storm.
Starlink satellites deployed in low-Earth orbit
The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral at 11:38 p.m. EDT, following a southeasterly trajectory that threaded between Florida and the Bahamas. About two and a half minutes after liftoff, the first stage separated from the second stage and began its descent toward the drone ship. The first stage successfully landed on the platform about eight and a half minutes after liftoff, marking the fifth flight and landing for this booster.
The second stage continued to carry the payload of 22 Starlink satellites into orbit. The Starlink satellites are part of SpaceX’s ambitious project to provide high-speed internet access to remote areas of the world using a constellation of thousands of satellites in low-Earth orbit. According to SpaceX, the Starlink network has over 1,800 satellites in orbit and has more than 100,000 active users in 14 countries.
The Starlink satellites were deployed from the second stage about an hour after liftoff, completing the primary mission objective. SpaceX said that it would continue to launch more Starlink missions from Cape Canaveral in the near future, but did not announce a specific date for the next launch.
SpaceX breaks launch record for Florida’s Space Coast
The Starlink 6-16 mission was the 49th launch from Florida’s Space Coast this year, breaking the previous record of 48 launches set in 2020. SpaceX has been the most prolific launch provider in Florida, accounting for 41 of the launches this year. The company has also demonstrated its ability to reuse its rockets and spacecraft, reducing the cost and increasing the frequency of space access.
SpaceX is also preparing to launch its first all-civilian orbital mission, called Inspiration4, from Kennedy Space Center on Wednesday, September 20. The mission will feature four private citizens who will spend three days in orbit aboard a Crew Dragon capsule, raising funds and awareness for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.