SpaceX launches 60 more Starlink broadband satellites
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched a new stack of Starlink internet satellites into orbit Wednesday afternoon (May 26), before sticking a landing at sea to top off the mission.
The previously-flown Falcon 9 rocket blasted off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station here in Florida at 2:59 p.m. EDT (1859 GMT), marking the company’s 16th launch of the year. It also marked the second flight for this particular Falcon 9.
“What a beautiful day for rocket launch here. As you can see the Falcon 9 has successfully lifted off from Pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, carrying our stack of 60 Starlink satellites to orbit,” SpaceX engineer Youmei Zhou said during a live webcast of the launch.
The successful liftoff marked the fourth time SpaceX launched a batch of Starlink satellites on one of its 229-foot-tall (70 meters) workhorse Falcon 9 rockets within four many weeks, as the company works to expand its burgeoning broadband constellation. SpaceX’s rapid pace will continue in June as the company has a busy month ahead, including the next space station resupply mission, slated to blast off June 3.
Approximately nine minutes after liftoff, the rocket’s first stage returned to Earth, touching down on SpaceX’s drone ship “Just Read the Instructions,” for a second successful landing.
It was nothing but blue skies over the space coast as the Falcon 9 rocket thundered across the sky. Weather forecasters with Space Launch Delta 45 (formerly known as the 45th Space Wing) at Patrick Space Force Base in Florida predicted a 90% chance of favorable conditions for launch and mother nature did not disappoint.
SpaceX has been taking advantage of its fleet of flight-proven boosters, as all of its missions so far in 2021 have flown on a reused rocket, with 13 of those missions carrying Starlink satellites.
Today’s flight, called Starlink 28, is a bit unique in that SpaceX is using one of its newest boosters to loft the broadband satellites into orbit. Typically SpaceX saves boosters with fewer miles on them for paying customers, opting to reserve the most-flown boosters for its own missions. This way SpaceX can push each booster to its limits.