SpaceX sent another batch of Starlink satellites to orbit this morning from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral. Liftoff was at 11:07 AM EST into seasonably cool (~65ºF) and crystal blue skies over Florida.
Beautiful SKies, But Launch Bad Photography Weather
The cooler air over warmer water meant different air densities were mixing, creating perfect conditions for something I call “shimmer” but is more properly called “heat distortion.” Given that 8-9 miles is as close as almost anyone can view some launches (Starlink, especially) these are a real PITA for photographers. The stars twinkle in the night sky because of the same principles.
So, that meant taking the picture the situation allows. This is about as good a launch photo as anyone got from this launch location.
SpaceX sent another batch of Starlink satellites to orbit this morning from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral. Liftoff was at 11:07 AM EST into seasonably cool (~65ºF) and crystal blue skies over Florida.
SpaceX Starlink 6-66 rises out of the heat distortion in the air over the Banana River on November 21, 2024. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
Around 8.25 minutes later, Falcon 9 booster B1069 touched down offshore on ASDS ‘A Shortfall of Gravitas, successfully concluding its 20th mission. ‘A Shortfall of Gravitas’ had been pre-positioned off the coast of The Bahamas in the Atlantic Ocean and will return to Port Canaveral and B1069 will be returned to SpaceX’s Hangar X for inspection and, presumably, preparation for its next flight.
The booster joins an ever-expanding group of Falcon 9 boosters with at least 20 successful missions. SpaceX has said in the past that they are working towards certifying Falcon 9 first-stage boosters for at least forty flights, but so far none has flown more than 23 times successfully: Booster B1067 is the leader in the clubhouse with 23 flights, and it is ostensibly in preparation for its next flight, its 24th.
SpaceX Starlink 6-66 ascending on November 21, 2024 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
While the booster was landing at sea on its target drone ship, the second stage of Falcon 9 continued to orbit, and achieved its initial elliptical orbit about the same time as the booster was touching down below on Earth’s surface. A quick orbital rounding burn followed, and at 12:13 PM EST, SpaceX announced that the launch was a success when it said that the payload of Starlink satellites had been successfully deployed.
988th launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
273rd launch from SLC-40 at CCSFS
432nd SpaceX launch all time
56th launch from SLC-40 this year
48th consecutive successful Falcon 9 launch
375th Falcon Family Booster landing
86th landing on ASOG
120th SpaceX launch this year
Launch Replay
Next Launch
SpaceX is scheduled to launch the Northrup Grumman-built Optus X telecommunications satellite aboard a Falcon 9 Sunday afternoon from LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center.
Date: NET November 25, 2024
Organization: SpaceX
Mission: Starlink 12-1
Rocket: Falcon 9
Launch Site: Space Launch Complex 40, CCSFS
Launch Window: 4:32 – 8:32 AM EST
Payload: Starlink satellites
Keep in mind that launch dates and times change often. Launch attempts can be scrubbed anytime due to weather, technical reasons, or range conditions.
November 18, 2024, Cape Canaveral SpaceX kept up their torrid pace of launches this afternoon when it launched the GSAT-20 for New Space India Ltd. (NSIL) from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Liftoff was at 1:31 PM ET under a nearly completely overcast sky.
This is a very busy time SpaceX. It has launched three Falcon 9 missions over the past two days, and also plans to launch Starship Heavy on its sixth test flight from Texas tomorrow.
About 8.5 minutes after liftoff, Booster B1073 successfully touched down on the SpaceX droneship ASDS ‘Just Read The Instructions’, completing its part of the mission. At roughly the same time as the first stage touchdown, Falcon 9’s second stage achieved orbit.
At 2:06 PM ET, SpaceX confirmed the successful deployment of the payload, concluding another successful Falcon 9 mission for the company. Today marked the 114th successful Falcon 9 mission in 2024.
SpaceX kept up their torrid pace of launches this afternoon when it launched the GSAT-20 for New Space India Ltd. (NSIL) from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Liftoff was at 1:31 PM ET under a nearly completely overcast sky.
Booster B1077 powering Falcon 9 off of the launch pad at Space Launch Complex 40 on November 18th Photo: Charles Boyer / ToT
This is a very busy time SpaceX. It has launched three Falcon 9 missions over the past two days, and also plans to launch Starship Heavy on its sixth test flight from Texas tomorrow.
About 8.5 minutes after liftoff, Booster B1073 successfully touched down on the SpaceX droneship ASDS ‘Just Read The Instructions’, completing its part of the mission. At roughly the same time as the first stage touchdown, Falcon 9’s second stage achieved orbit.
At 2:06 PM ET, SpaceX confirmed the successful deployment of the payload, concluding another successful Falcon 9 mission for the company. Today marked the 114th successful Falcon 9 mission in 2024.
The GSAT-20 satellite was built by ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization) for New Space India Ltd. (NSIL). NSIL is the commercial arm of ISRO, with the primary responsibility of enabling Indian industries to take up space-related activities.
The GSAT-20 satellite is a 4,700 kilogram geostationary Ka-band high-throughput communications satellite with 32 spot beams and an approximately Gigabit per second throughput. It is designed to cover all of India, with a special emphasis on providing connectivity for Northeastern India. It is slated for a 14-year service life after commissioning.
ISRO opted for SpaceX to launch GSAT 20 because India’s indigenous heavy rocket, the Launch Vehicle Mark 3, lacks the capability to launch a satellite of this size and weight to a geostationary transfer orbit.
By The Numbers
432nd SpaceX launch all time
112th launch rocket launch this year for SpaceX
430th launch all-time for SpaceX
273rd launch from Space Launch Complex 40, all-time
374th Falcon Family Booster landing
87th landing on A Shortfall Of Gravitas
45th consecutive successful landing for a Falcon family booster
Launch Replay
Next Launch
SpaceX plans to launch the Starlink 6-66 mission with a Falcon 9 carrying more Starlink satellites for Group 6 on Thursday, November 21st.
Date: NET November 21, 2024
Organization: SpaceX
Mission: Starlink 6-66
Rocket: Falcon 9
Launch Site: Space Launch Complex 40, Cape Canaveral
Launch Window: 10:53 AM – 2:53 PM EST
Payload: Starlink satellites
Keep in mind that launch dates and times change often. Launch attempts can be scrubbed anytime due to weather, technical reasons, or range conditions.
Falcon 9 quickly went into the clouds after lifting off on November 18, 2024 Photo: Charles Boyer / ToT
The tail of the Dragon: as it entered the clouds over Space Launch Complex 40, Falcon 9’s Merlin engines put on a brief but colorful display. Photo: Charles Boyer / ToT
SpaceX launched the Starlink 6-69 mission to low-Earth orbit late this afternoon, and by so doing completed its second launch from the Eastern Range (Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and Kennedy Space Center) in less than five hours. Starlink 6-69 launched aboard Falcon 9 from Space Launch Complex 40 at 4:28 PM EST, a mere four hours and six minutes after SpaceX launched Koreasat 6A from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center. Both launches were successes.
SpaceX launched the Starlink 6-69 mission to low-Earth orbit late this afternoon, and by so doing completed its second launch from the Eastern Range (Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and Kennedy Space Center) in less than five hours. Starlink 6-69 launched aboard Falcon 9 from Space Launch Complex 40 at 4:28 PM EST, a mere four hours and six minutes after SpaceX launched Koreasat 6A from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center. Both launches were successes.
People enjoying late afternoon on Cocoa Beach were treated to a second launch for the day. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
Around 8.5 minutes after liftoff, Booster B1080 touched down safely on the company’s drone ship ‘A Shortfall Of Gravitas’ to complete its twelfth mission successfully, while the second stage and payload continued to low Earth orbit. About the same time that the booster landed, the initial orbit for the payload was achieved, with a short orbit rounding burn just before payload deployment.
‘A Shortfall of Gravitas’ will now return with B0180 to Port Canaveral, where the booster will be offloaded, returned to SpaceX’s Hangar X facility at Kennedy Space Center where it will be inspected and presumably begin the process of it being prepared for its next mission,
At 5:33 PM EDT, SpaceX confirmed a successful deployment of the payload of Starlink satellites and a successful end to the flight.
53rd launch from Space Launch Complex 40 this year
Next Launch
The next launch from the Eastern Range is a near carbon copy of today’s Starlink 6-69 flight. Starlink 6-68 is slated to launch from SLC-40 on Thursday with the launch window opening at 5:33 AM EST and extending to 9:33 AM the same day. The payload is another group of Starlink satellites to join SpaceX’s constellation of data satellites.
Date: NET November 14, 2024
Organization: SpaceX / NASA
Mission: Starlink 6-68
Rocket: Falcon 9
Launch Site: Space Launch Complex 40, Cape Canaveral
Launch Window: 5:33 AM – 9:33 AM EST
Payload: Starlink satellites
Keep in mind that launch dates and times change often. Launch attempts can be scrubbed anytime due to weather, technical reasons, or range conditions.
Starlink 6-69 rising to space on November 11, 2024 Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of TitusvilleStarlink 6-69 rising to space on November 11, 2024 Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
SpaceX launched the latest resupply mission for the International Space Station this evening from Pad LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center. Liftoff was at 9:29 PM EDT into skies that cleared just in time for the launch.
Around eight minutes and a half minutes after launching roughly ten miles away, Falcon 9 Booster B1083 completed its fifth mission successfully when it touched down at Landing Zone 1 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. This marked the 46th landing at LZ-1 and the 365th Falcon booster landing all-time.
Late in the countdown on a picture-perfect Florida fall afternoon, SpaceX was forced to call a hold and a scrub due to an issue with Falcon 9’s helium system. On Falcon 9, helium is used topressurize fuel tanks, steady propellant flows; and for cooling systems. If the helium system on the rocket is off-kilter, Falcon 9 will not go to space that day, and today it didn’t.
Both the rocket and the payload are in good condition, and SpaceX engineers and technicians will rectify the helium issue before the next launch attempt.
Due to SpaceX officially announced the scrub a few minutes later.
Standing down from today’s launch. Vehicle and payload are healthy
At 6:30 PM EST, SpaceX has not identified a new day and time for the next attempt for the Starlink launch. It will be Tuesday, November 5th, before they can try again due to the Falcon 9 CRS-31 Resupply Mission to the International Space Station being scheduled to launch tomorrow evening from Pad LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center. Naturally, that mission is a priority over the Starlink mission.
At 5:45 PM EST, the 45th Weather Squadron from Space Launch Delta 45 of the US Space Force released their official weather forecast for Starlink 6-77 for a Tuesday launch attempt at only 40% GO, and they also note two days of poor weather conditions in the landing area for the returning Falcon 9 Booster.
Weather in the booster recovery issue would be questionable tomorrow, according to the 45th Weather Squadron.
Closeup of a rainbow over Falcon moments after a scrub. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
Late this afternoon, SpaceX is planning to launch Falcon 9 from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral to add to its constantly expanding constellation of Starlink satellites.
This time a Group 6 launch, meaning it is a southeastward launch. It will be into very late afternoon skies on the first day of Standard time and sunsets an hour (by the clock) earlier than the day before. The launch window extends from 4:57 PM EST to 8:03 PM and is expected to be under pleasant skies and an onshore breeze.
At A Glance
Mission: Starlink 6-67
Date: NET November 3, 2024
Launch Window: 4:57 PM EST — 8:03 PM EST*
Weather: 90% GO
Organization: SpaceX
Rocket: Falcon 9
Trajectory: Southeast
Launch Site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
Booster Landing: ASDS ‘Just Read The Instructions’
A graphic representation of Starlink satellites in orbit from SatelliteMap.Space
Payload
The mission’s payload is another group of Starlink satellites, which will join Group 6 of SpaceX/Starlink’s orbital constellation in low-Earth orbit. Starlink is an Internet service serving over four million customers in over one hundred countries and territories globally.
To date, SpaceX has not released any renderings of its Starlink Mini v2, which is the bulk of the units that they have been launching over the last several months.
Weather
The 45th Weather Squadron of the US Space Force Launch Delta 45 has forecast a 10% probability of a violation of acceptable weather conditions through the launch window, meaning that they expect conditions to be 90% GO. This is pretty close to a perfect forecast for the launch site, but the 45th is also listing a moderate concern in the Booster Landing Area. No further information is given.
Primary concerns are cumulus clouds in the Cape Canaveral area.
Launch Viewing: In Person
The best free options are available for spectators: the Banana River Bridge on FL 528 West or the southern Titusville parks on Washington Avenue / US-1 or the beaches.
Jetty Park will be open. There is an entry fee.
The Space Bar will be open through the launch window. New York New York in Titusville will be closing right as the window opens. Restaurants in Port Canaveral, specifically Gators Dockside, Fishlips and Grills Seafood should have good views after the rocket clears obstructions.
Launch spectators on the beach at Jetty Park. Falcon 9 ascending is the orange dot in the top left quarter of the photo. (click to enlarge) Photo: Charles Boyer / ToT
Cocoa Beach or the Cocoa Beach Pier area is also very good, but ignition won’t be visible, and it will take several seconds for the rocket to clear obstructions between the launch pad and viewers.
Remember that there is a delay between a launch stream you listen to on your phone and the actual countdown clock. That is simply because of physics: it takes time for the signal to travel from the launch site, through the Internet, and back down to your phone, resulting in a five to fifteen-second delay. If you are watching in person, expect ignition to happen a few seconds before you hear it on launch coverage on your device. The gap can vary so a real-time countdown clock is handy.
Next Space Flight is an app for iOS and Android phones, has a real-time countdown clock that is accurate to a second, give or take. The app is free. Search the App Store or Google Play. They are also on the web: nextspaceflight.com.
Online Viewing
SpaceX will have a livestream of the launch on their website: Starlink 6-67. This will also be available on the X platform. Coverage starts about fifteen minutes before liftoff.
Spaceflight Now will have coverage of the launch starting about one hour before liftoff on Youtube: link
For official updates regarding launch times, SpaceX.com is the best source of information. Starlink launch times change from time to time, and the company generally updates their website within minutes of the decision to change the launch time. This is very handy if none of the streaming options on YouTube have started their broadcasts.
SpaceX sent another group of Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit early this evening from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral. Liftoff was at 5:10 PM EDT under stiff breezes and crystal blue skies.
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