A Falcon 9 lifting off of SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral in early evening. Photo: Charles Boyer, ToT
Monday is the day most of us get back to work, and SpaceX is no exception: the company plans to launch a Falcon 9 carrying 23 more Starlink v2 Mini satellites to orbit early this evening from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The launch window extends from 5:00 PM – 9:31 PM EDT.
Tonight’s launch will be the 175th Falcon 9 launch from SLC-40, and the 260th overall from the venerable launch pad, which opened for business in 1965.
Weather
The 45th Weather Squadron has issued a forecast for today’s launch, and according to them, there is less than a 5% Probability of Violation for weather conditions. That means the chances of acceptable weather are greater than 95%:
Trajectory
Launch trajectory will be southeastward. So far, all Group 6 Starlink missions have taken this path.
Landing
The Falcon 9 first stage will attempt to land on the Automated Spaceport Drone Ship (ASDS) ‘A Shortfall Of Gravitas’, which will be located in the Atlantic Ocean northeast of the Bahamas.
After landing, ‘A Shortfall Of Gravitas’ will return to Port Canaveral, and the booster will be offloaded and returned to SpaceX’s Hangar X facility at Kennedy Space Center for inspection, refurbishment and possible reuse for a future launch.
Booster
SpaceX has not yet announced the booster that will be used for this mission. We will add the pertinent data here as it becomes available.
Online Viewing
A live webcast of this mission will begin on SpaceX’s X account feed about five minutes prior to liftoff. Watch live on X.
SpaceX’s official web page has links to live coverage as well as up-to-date planned launch times. Starlink 6-44 Mission Page.
Spaceflight Now will begin its live launch feed one hour prior to liftoff. SFN on Youtube.
Launch Viewing: In Person
This evening’s planned launch is from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral, which means that the best direct views of liftoff are: Banana River Bridge on FL-528 W near Port Canaveral, or the southern parks on US-1 / S. Washington Avenue in Titusville. Kennedy Point Park and,Rotary Riverview Park (among others) are your best bets.
Cocoa Beach, Cocoa Beach Pier, Jetty Park Pier will have indirect views, meaning that liftoff will not be visible, but after the rocket clears the pad and any ground obstructions, you will be able to see Falcon 9 ascending clearly assuming there are no clouds between you and the rocket.
Being that the launch is early evening, if you plan to attend in person, don’t forget mosquito spray.
SpaceX / NASA CRS-30 liftoff aboard Falcon 9 on March 21, 2024. Photo: Ed Cordero, Florida Media Now
SpaceX launched its thirtieth resupply mission to the International Space Station on Thursday from Pad SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. Launch was right on time at 4:55 PM EDT into nearly perfect weather. Today’s launch was the company’s 27 launch of the year so far.
Talk of Titusville Publisher Michael Lynch caught this view of CRS-30 lifting off from Titusville Photo: Michael Lynch, Talk of Titusville
Several minutes after launch, the booster used for the flight — B1080 — returned to CCSFS and touched down successfully, completing its mission for the day and sixth mission overall while the payload continued to orbit. A sonic boom heard across the Space Coast region heralded the arrival of the booster, which touched down at SpaceX’s LZ-1 only a few miles from the launch pad at SLC-40.
This launch was the first Cargo Dragon 2 spacecraft from SLC-40 and will be the first mission-use of the newly installed Crew Access Arm on the SLC-40 launch tower.
Late in the first stage’s booster flight over Florida skies yesterday. Photo: Ed Cordero, Florida Media Now
The Cargo Dragon spacecraft is planned to arrive at ISS at 7:30 AM EDT on Saturday, where it will autonomously dock to Station’s Harmony module on the zenith port.
After docking, the spacecraft is expected to spend about a month attached to ISS before it returns to Earth off the coast of Florida.
Booster B1080
Thursday’s flight was the sixth for Booster 1080. It entered service on May 21, 2023 when it carried four astronauts aboard the Axion-2 mission. Its most recent flight before yesterday was the Axiom-3 mission, where it again carried four astronauts to orbit.
Cargo Dragon on the launch pad at SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station with the Crew Access Arm attached. Photo: SpaceX
SpaceX will launch its thirtieth resupply mission to the International Space Station on Thursday from Pad SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. Launch time is set for 4:55 PM EDT in an instantaneous window.
This is an RTLS (Return To Launch Site) mission, meaning Falcon 9 will return and land at LZ-1 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. A sonic boom heard across the Space Coast region will herald the arrival of the booster.
This launch will be the first Cargo Dragon 2 spacecraft from SLC-40 and will be the first mission-use of the newly installed Crew Access Arm on the SLC-40 launch tower.
The Cargo Dragon spacecraft is planned to arrive at ISS at 7:30 AM EDT on Saturday, where it will autonomously dock to Station’s Harmony module on the zenith port.
After docking, the spacecraft is expected to spend about a month attached to ISS before it returns to Earth off the coast of Florida.
Weather
According to the 45th Weather Squadron, the Probability of Violation is 10%, meaning there is a 90% chance of acceptable weather. Prime concerns are the Thick Cloud Layers Rule, Cumulus Cloud Rule.
Trajectory
Northeast, along the orbital inclination of the International Space Station.
Booster
SpaceX has not yet announced which Falcon 9 booster it is using for this launch.
SpaceX generally provides live launch coverage starting fifteen minutes prior to launch on their account on the X platform. Click here
Spaceflight Now will provide launch coverage one hour prior to liftoff on their YouTube channel. Click here
In Person Viewing
Tomorrow’s launch is from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral, which means that the best direct views of liftoff are at either the Banana River Bridge on FL-528 W near Port Canaveral, or the southern parks on US-1 / S. Washington Avenue in Titusville. The Banana River Bridge will offer both a direct view of the launch pad as well as an excellent view of the returning booster.
Jetty Park in Port Canaveral has good views, but viewers will not be able to see the launch pad directly. Once Falcon 9 rises over the sand berm on the north side of the Port’s inlet, however, an excellent view of the rocket rising is available. Jetty Park is also an excellent spot to see the booster landing.
Important Note: Jetty Park has an entry fee and requires advance purchase of a pass. CLICK HERE to purchase parking passes.
The ascending rocket will also be visible on the beaches after liftoff when Falcon 9 clears any obstructions.
The fourth of four informational sessions regarding the Department of the Air Force’s (DAF) ongoing Environmental Impact Study (EIS) for a potential launch pad at the Cape for SpaceX’s Starship will be held online tonight.
Officials from the Department of the Air Force, the US Space Force, the Federal Aviation Administration, the US Coast Guard, NASA, and the US Coast Guard will be present to answer questions from members of the public who are interested in learning more about the DAF / SpaceX proposed action to lease SLC-37 to SpaceX once Delta IV Heavy launch activities conclude over the next several weeks, or to build a new launch pad between SLC-37 and SLC-40. That pad would be named Space Launch Complex 50, or SLC-50. Another option is no action, meaning no Starship launch activities from the Cape.
Option 1 at a Glance: Use Current SLC-37
Option 1: Re-engineer and utilize existing pad LC-37. In the upper part of the photo is the dormant LC-37A, which would be included. Photo: Google Maps
Option 2 at a Glance: Build a New Launch Pad, SLC-50
Approximate location of a new launch pad at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station that would be used for SpaceX Starship if it is constructed. Photo: Google Maps. Graphics: Talk of Titusville
In-Depth Looks
Below are two links that can provide much information about the Proposed Action. First, the official site for the EIS has a great deal of information, and in particular, a PDF file of the information displayed at the in-person meetings can be downloaded. The second is our informational article published earlier this month. In it, Talk of Titusville gives additional information regarding Starship, Starship’s propellant, the risk of pollution from them, and the Proposed Actions.
After the final Public Meeting on March 12, a relatively quiet period will follow where studies will be conducted and a draft Environmental Impact Statement is created.
A Draft EIS is planned to be released in December 2024.
Today, the US Space Force (along with the Department of the Air Force) held the third of three in-person meetings in Cape Canaveral to provide information about a Proposed Action that would ultimately see SpaceX’s Starship launch and land at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
At these meetings, the public was able to ask public affairs officials about the ramifications of SpaceX using launch pad SLC-37 or building a new launch complex, SLC-50, between current pads SLC-37 and SLC-40 on the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Either of those facilities that could be used for Starship operations if they are chosen and later constructed.
Public Information Session at The Radisson today in Cape Canaveral Photo: Charles Boyer / ToT
Officials from the Department of the Air Force, US Space Force, the Federal Aviation Administration, US Coast Guard, NASA, and the US Coast Guard were present today to answer questions from a large number of members of the public interested in learning more about the DAF / SpaceX proposed action. Visitors could also submit their comments in person, which many folks took the time to do in the past three days.
At today’s meeting in Cape Canaveral
Online Meeting Coming Soon
For those who could not attend the information sessions in Cocoa, Titusville or Cape Canaveral in person, there is one remaining meeting, this time online:
A registration link has not yet been posted, and is labeled as “Coming Soon.” It will be activated closer to the date of the meeting.
What’s An EIS Again?
An Environmental Impact Study takes a look at multiple factors that could be affected by a project like a re-engineered or new launch pad at Cape Canaveral.
Those factors include:
Airspace and maritime resources
Air quality
Climate change
Noise
Cultural resources
Biological resources
Water resources
Hazardous materials and wastes
Land use
Infrastructure and utilities
Geology
Socioeconomics
Environmental justice
Safety and occupational health
Section 4(f) of the Department of Transportation Act of 1966
The American Bar Association explains it this way:
“[An] environmental impact statement (EIS) is a government document that outlines the impact of a proposed project on its surrounding environment. In the United States, these statements are mandated by federal law for certain projects. Environmental impact statements are meant to inform the work and decisions of policymakers and community leaders.
“In the United States at the federal level, an EIS is a report mandated by the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), to assess the potential impact of actions “significantly affecting the quality of the human environment.” This requirement under NEPA does not prohibit harm to the environment, but rather requires advanced identification and disclosure of harm.”
The Federal Aviation Administration is responsible for commercial spaceflight as well as its traditional roles in aircraft such as private planes, and commercial airlines, among others. One thing that was not included in the EIS public handouts was specifically what their role is in terms of Starship launches from the Cape:
The role of the Federal Aviation Administration in Starship potentially flying from Cape Canaveral was illustrated in a display at the EIS Public Meeting in Cape Canaveral on March 7, 2024.
Notable: the Environmental Impact Statement will fulfill the FAA’s obligation for an environmental review, and any mitigations deemed necessary will need to be completed in order for the FAA to issue SpaceX a launch license (after the pad is constructed.)
In-Depth Looks
Below are two links that can provide a great deal of information about the Proposed Action. First, the official site for the EIS has a great deal of information, and in particular, a PDF file of the information displayed at the in-person meetings can be downloaded. The second is our informational article published earlier this month. In it, Talk of Titusville gives additional information regarding Starship, Starship’s propellant and the risk of pollution from them as well as a look at the Proposed Actions.
After the final Public Meeting on March 12, a relatively quiet period will follow where studies will be conducted and a draft Environmental Impact Statement is created.
After next week, work will be done behind the scenes where many of the factors that affect the project are studied, public sentiment from the meetings will be gauged and a draft EIS released by the end of the year.
Then, in December of this year, that Draft Environmental Statement will be publicly released, and a Public Hearing will be conducted. Public comments on the Draft EIS will be solicited, and finally, in the summer of 2025, the preferred altenative will be identified along with the release of the Final EIS.
A Falcon 9 lifts off from Pad SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station File photo by Charles Boyer / ToT
On the heels of the successful launch of Crew-8 from LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center late last night, SpaceX is planning to get back to it quickly this evening when they launch the Starlink 6-41 mission from Pad SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The launch window extends from 6:56 PM – 10:54 PM EST.
Weather for tonight’s launch looks good according to the 45th Weather Squadron: only a one-in-five chance of a weather-related delay, meaning that there is an 80% chance of acceptable weather conditions throughout the launch window. According to them, the primary concerns are the “Cumulus Cloud Rule and the Anvil Cloud Rules.”
Trajectory
A southeasern trajectory is expected, with a booster landing in the Atlantic Ocean just east of the Bahamas.
Booster
SpaceX has not announced which booster will be used for this flight at the time of this writing. When that information becomes available, we will add it here.
Landing
Landing will occur on ASDS (Automated Spaceport Drone Ship) A Shortfall of Gravitas, which will be stationed offshore and downrange. After Falcon 9’s booster lands safely aboard the vessel, it will return to Port Canaveral and then to SpaceX’s Hangar X facility at Kennedy Space Center for inspection and presumably refurbishment and preparation for its next flight.
Launch Viewing: Online
SpaceX generally provides live launch coverage starting fifteen minutes prior to launch on their account on the X platform. Click here
Spaceflight Now will provide launch coverage one hour prior to liftoff on their YouTube channel. Click here
Falcon 9 lifts off to begin the Starlink 6-39 mission today at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Pad SLC-40. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 today from Pad SLC-40 and sent another twenty-four Starlink satellites to orbit. Liftoff occurred at 5:06 PM EST on what might best be described as a “travel brochure day” — crystal clear skies, with a light breeze and temperatures in the high 60s. In other words, the sort of winter day in Florida draws many tourists because the weather is darn near perfect.
Booster Touches Down Safely
About eight and a half minutes after liftoff, Booster B1069 touched down safely on SpaceX’s A Shortfall of Gravitas automated droneship located offshore in the Atlantic Ocean near the Bahamas. It was the booster’s fourteenth flight since it went into service on December 21, 2021, launching the CRS-24 mission to ferry supplies to the International Space Station.
Shortly before staging, Falcon 9 flies high above the Florida coastline today. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
After returning to Port Canaveral several days from now, Booster B1069 will be returned to SpaceX’s facilities at Hangar X at Kennedy Space Center, where it will be inspected, refurbished, and presumably prepared for its next flight.
Falcon 9 Performance Boosts
In a post on the X platform today, SpaceX noted that today’s “mission [was] carrying one additional Starlink satellite from previous East Coast missions thanks in part to performance increases on Falcon 9.”
Picture Perfect Launch
Initially scheduled for yesterday, today’s launch was the second attempt to complete the Starlink 6-39 mission. Crowds of spectators lined the parks on US-1 in Titusville, the beaches and along FL-528W to watch the liftoff, and weren’t disappointed by the views they could see. Falcon 9 was visible all the way through first stage and slightly afterwards, which is a rare site for a daytime launch.
Next Launch
It will be a busy week at the Eastern Range, so long as the weather cooperates: SpaceX will launch another batch of Starlink satellites to orbit on Wednesday, February 28th, with the Starlink 6-40 mission slated to liftoff between 11:00 AM and 2:31 PM EST from Pad SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Not long after that, at 12:04 AM EST on Friday, March 1st, Crew-8 will head to the International Space Station aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 from pad LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center.
SpaceX successfully launched the HTS 113BT telecommunications satellite to orbit from Cape Canaveral this afternoon at 3:11 PM EST for Indonesian company PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk. Around eight and one-half minutes later, Booster 1067 safely touched down on SpaceX’s Automated Spaceport Droneship “Just Read The Instructions,” (JRTI) which was located offshore in the Atlantic Ocean.
SpaceX Falcon 9 lifts off February 20, 2024 carrying the HTS 113BT satellite Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
SpaceX successfully launched the HTS 113BT telecommunications satellite to orbit from Cape Canaveral this afternoon at 3:11 PM EST for Indonesian company PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk. Around eight and one-half minutes later, Booster 1067 safely touched down on SpaceX’s Automated Spaceport Droneship “Just Read The Instructions,” (JRTI) which was located offshore in the Atlantic Ocean.
Falcon 9 in flight on February 20, 2024. Photo: Ed Cordero / Florida Media Now
JRTI is set to return to Port Canaveral several days from now, and the booster will be returned to SpaceX’s Hangar X facility at Kennedy Space Center for inspection, refurbishment and preparation for a potential 18th flight.
HTS 113BT At A Glance
HTS 113BT will replace the lost Palapa N1 (Nusantara 2) satellite. It was launched in April 2020, aboard a Long March-3B/G2 (Chang Zheng-3B/G2) rocket. The launch took place at 11:46 UTC from the LC2 pad at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, but a reported third stage failure prevented the mission from being completed, and Palapa N1 re-entered Earth’s atmosphere and disintegrated shortly afterwards.
Once commissioned, according to Thales, the company that built HTS 113BT, the satellite will “provide more than 32 Gbps capacity over Indonesia. The satellite [weighed] about 4 metric tons at launch and will be delivered early 2024 for a 15-year expected lifetime.”
Successful 17th Mission for B1067
Today’s launch was the 17th flight for SpaceX Falcon 9 Booster 1067, which entered service in 2021 when it launched the ISS Commercial Resupply mission CRS-22.
Booster 1067
Flight Number
Mission
Date
1
CRS-22
June 21, 2021
2
NASA Crew-3
November 11, 2021
3
Türksat 5B
December 19, 2021
4
NASA Crew-4
April 27, 2022
5
CRS-25
July 14, 2022
6
Starlink 4-34
September 19, 2022
7
Hotbird 13G
November 3, 2022
8
O3b mPOWER 1 & 2
December 16, 2022
9
Starlink 5-2
January 26, 2023
10
Starlink 5-5
March 24, 2023
11
Starlink 5-9
May 14, 2023
12
Satria-1
June 18, 2023
13
Starlink 6-10
August 17, 2023
14
Starlink 6-22
October 13, 2023
15
Starlink 6-29
November 22, 2023
16
Starlink 6-35
January 7, 2024
17
HTS 113BT
February 20, 2024
Next Launch
Next up from the Eastern Range (CCSFS and KSC) is Starlink 6-39, SpaceX’s next batch of satellites for its orbital-based Internet service. The launch window extends from 4:59 PM – 9:30 PM EST and will be from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Falcon 9 lifting off from SLC-40 in 2022, as seen from the Banana River Bridge on FL 528 W in Cape Canaveral. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
SpaceX is planning to launch a Falcon 9 carrying the Indonesian satellite Telkomsat HTS 113BT tomorrow afternoon from Pad SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The first stage booster will then land offshore on Just Read The Instructions, one of the company’s Automated Spaceport Drone Ships. The launch window opens at 3:11 PM EST and extends to 5:44 PM.
This will be SpaceX’s 16th flight this year.
Payload
Owned by Indonesian companies PT Telkom (Persero) Tbk (Telkom), HTS 113BT is a high-throughput telecommunications satellite that will provide communications services in C-band/Ku-Band from its orbital position at 113° East once it reaches its final orbital destination and successfully completes it commissioning activities.
According to Thales, the company that built HTS 113BT, the satellite will “provide more than 32 Gbps capacity over Indonesia. The satellite will weigh about 4 metric tons at launch and will be delivered early 2024 for a 15-year expected lifetime.”
Endi Fitri Herlianto, CEO of Telkomsat, said in a 2021 Thales press release announcing the contract to build the satellite that “HTS 113BT will strengthening connectivity infrastructure across Indonesia archipelago to support digital business by providing better quality of service for Indonesia society.”
Weather
After weekend of three days of near-steady rains that brought as much as four inches of precipitation to the Space Coast area, the 45th Weather Squadron has forecast only a 5% chance of a Probability of Violation of launch weather criteria for tomorrow. That means that they expect a 95% chance of acceptable conditions.
L-1 forecast released by the 45th Weather Squadron at 9:30 AM EST on 19 FEB 24.
Should technical issues force a delay, the weather on Wednesday is expected to be a near repeat of Tuesday’s favorable forecast.
Trajectory
Falcon 9 is planned to head nearly due east after liftoff. Just Read The Instructions, SpaceX’s landing point for this mission, will be located ~300 miles offshore.
Booster
Booster B1067 will be flying its 17th mission. It last launched 01/07/2024 and has completed 16 successful missions since its first launch in 2021
Booster 1067
Flight Number
Mission
Date
1
CRS-22
June 21, 2021
2
NASA Crew-3
November 11, 2021
3
Türksat 5B
December 19, 2021
4
NASA Crew-4
April 27, 2022
5
CRS-25
July 14, 2022
6
Starlink 4-34
September 19, 2022
7
Hotbird 13G
November 3, 2022
8
O3b mPOWER 1 & 2
December 16, 2022
9
Starlink 5-2
January 26, 2023
10
Starlink 5-5
March 24, 2023
11
Starlink 5-9
May 14, 2023
12
Satria-1
June 18, 2023
13
Starlink 6-10
August 17, 2023
14
Starlink 6-22
October 13, 2023
15
Starlink 6-29
November 22, 2023
16
Starlink 6-35
January 7, 2024
Booster B1067
Coverage
Typically, SpaceX begins live coverage of its launches fifteen minutes before the planned liftoff on the X platform at https://twitter.com/SpaceX
Spaceflight Now typically begins its live coverage of launches from the Space Coast one hour before liftoff on its Youtube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@SpaceflightNowVideo
Launch Viewing
Tomorrow’s launch is from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral, which means that the best direct views of liftoff are at either the Banana River Bridge on FL-528 W near Port Canaveral, or the southern parks on US-1 / S. Washington Avenue in Titusville.
Kennedy Space Center’s Visitor’s Center has not offered a specific ticket package for this launch, but first part of the launch window is within its hours of operation. That means that watching the launch may be possible from the Apollo Saturn V Center. Check with the KSCVC site for up-to-date information. Admission and parking fees will of course apply.
Indirect views where the rocket becomes visible after it clears the pad and the trees in the distance are at Jetty Park in Port Canaveral, Playalinda Beach in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge or of course on any of the beaches in the Cape Canaveral / Cocoa Beach area. For launch viewing at Playalinda, arriving two hours early is strongly advised, as the National Park Service and KSC Police will close the gates to new entrants once parking lots are full or as liftoff time approaches. Entry fees apply to Jetty Park and Playalinda, consult their websites for the cost and payment methods available.
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