cape canaveral

gps3-7 liftoff

It was a typical summer’s day here on the Space Coast: at first, sunny and warm, humid with an ever-present threat of a thunderstorm lingering off in the distance.

Two hours before liftoff at 11:30 AM, it was clear that thunderstorms were coming towards Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
Two hours before liftoff at 11:30 AM, it was clear that thunderstorms were coming towards Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville

An hour and a half before today’s launch, while the countdown clock was ticking towards T-0, the skies made good on their threat of a thunderstorm, with plenty of lightning strikes and heavy showers near Space Launch Complex 40, where the GPS III-7 satellite, also known as SV-08, waited atop Falcon 9 for liftoff just before the end of the launch window at 1:38 PM Eastern Time.

One hour before launch, with the range still red, skies were lifting.

Fortunately, there was a short gap between the first passing storm and the next one springing up on the western horizon, and SpaceX took good advantage of it as Booster B1092 fired up for its fourth mission and headed into a suddenly blue sky.

Other than the interesting weather, it was a typically normal mission for SpaceX: ascent was completely normal, with the booster reaching orbit about the same time as the second stage and payload. B1092 landed offshore on ASDS ‘A Shortfall of Gravitas’ safely at 8:29 a second after the company announced a nominal orbit insertion of stage 2 and GPS III-7.

At 01:38 PM, the sun was out, skies were blue and Falcon 9 roared off of the launch pad.
Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville

After additional burns of stage 2 were completed to place the payload precisely in its delivery location, GPS III-7 was deployed at T+01:29:28, marking another successful mission for SpaceX. It was the company’s 68th mission this year, and the 30th from SLC-40.

Payload

The Lockheed Martin GPS III-7 satellite is part of the next-generation Global Positioning System (GPS) constellation, delivering improved accuracy, resilience, and security to the overall system.

The GPS III series replaces older satellites to modernize the U.S. Space Force’s navigation infrastructure. GPS III-7 enhances positioning precision up to three times better than previous models and extends its lifespan to 15 years, reducing long-term costs and increasing operational reliability.

Launch Replay

Next Launch

Falcon 9 Block 5 | Starlink Group 12-19 Mission Details
Mission Falcon 9 Block 5 | Starlink Group 12-19
Organization SpaceX
Location Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
Rocket Falcon 9 Block 5
Pad Space Launch Complex 40
Status To Be Confirmed
Status Info Awaiting official confirmation – current date is known with some certainty.
Window Opens Monday, 06/02/2025 12:57:00 AM EDT
Window Closes Monday, 06/02/2025 4:57:00 AM EDT
Destination Low Earth Orbit
Mission Description A batch of satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation – SpaceX’s project for a space-based Internet communication system.
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The skies surrounding the Cape are a very busy place: they are used by airliners heading to and from nearby Orlando International Airport, by private pilots who enjoy a plethora of airport choices in the immediate vicinity: two in the Titusville area, another on Merritt Island across the river from Cocoa Village, Orlando Melbourne International airport and others. And that’s before one considers military activity at Patrick Space Force Base, the Skid Strip at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and of course the former Shuttle landing facility at Kennedy Space Center.

Keeping those skies safe and orderly for pilots and passengers is a gargantuan task before rockets are even considered, and once launch activities are added, things get even busier.

The FAA’s Role

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) oversees the licensing and safety of private and commercial aviation as well as commercial space launches and reentries, ensuring they are safely integrated into the U.S. National Airspace System (NAS). Their job is to protect people — whether in planes, on the ground, or at sea — from potential hazards during operations of both airplanes and rockets.

The pace of space launches and reentries is increasing steadily year over year, and to accommodate the increased traffic, the FAA is working to

  • keep airspace open longer before closure;
  • reduce how much airspace is closed and for how long;
  • reopen airspace sooner after it is no longer needed;
  • reroute only the aircraft directly affected by the operation;
  • track space vehicles in near-real time during flight; and
  • respond quickly to missions experiencing an anomaly.

Seven years ago, in 2018, the FAA shortened the period of time that airspace was closed for space operations from four hours to two, which provided some relief to aircraft trying to traverse the region around the launch.

Within the FAA, the Office of Commercial Space Transportation reviews whether space companies comply with licensing rules, including scrutinizing their flight safety analyses. Meanwhile, the Air Traffic Organization’s Office of Space Operations manages airspace use and enforces the Acceptable Level of Risk (ALR) policy to safely fit space missions into the NAS. These two offices work closely to apply the ALR policy effectively.

Factors Affecting Launch Licensing

In addition to vehicle safety relative to people and property, the FAA considers the following factors (in addition to other relevant factors) in determining whether a commercial space operation may proceed as requested or whether alternative approaches are required:

  • The location and timing of the proposed commercial space operation
  • The number of flights and/or passengers that will be affected by the operation
  • Holidays or significant events that result in more NAS congestion generally or in specific areas of the country (e.g., Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, Spring break, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Super Bowl, significant military operations/exercises)
  • Launch window duration
  • Nighttime v. daytime launches: The FAA encourages commercial space operations to take place during nighttime hours (to the extent practicable) when other flight operations tend to be reduced
  • Mission purpose: The FAA generally will prioritize commercial space operations that (1) have a national security purpose or are in the national interest and/or (2) commercial space launches carrying payloads

Those steps are taken to balance the needs of stakeholders utilizing the airspace in the launch corridor and are part of an Airspace Management Plan that is developed for each launch.

Aircraft Hazard Areas (AHAs)

Before any launch or reentry, the FAA designates Aircraft Hazard Areas (AHAs) to keep uninvolved aircraft clear of potential danger zones. The boundaries of these areas—covering location, size, and timing—are carefully calculated to keep the risk of an aircraft being hit by debris to less than one in a million.

Sample AHA and DRA map, via The FAA

Debris Response Area (DRA)

Beyond AHAs, the FAA can establish a Debris Response Area (DRA) as a backup safety measure. If a space vehicle malfunctions and debris enters the airspace unexpectedly, a DRA allows the FAA to swiftly reroute aircraft and block others from entering the affected zone.

A DRA is only activated if an anomaly occurs and only in airspace where the FAA can maintain reliable communication with pilots through surveillance and radio coverage. The DRA stays in effect until all falling debris from the launch has reached the ground.

Instructing Aircraft When a Debris Response Area is Activated 

If a DRA is activated, the FAA will issue an alert to all affected aircraft and airports, provide individual aircraft instructions while it remains in effect, and issue a closeout alert when it is deactivated.  

While the DRA is active, the FAA acts to mitigate the risk to aircraft exposed to falling debris. In general, the FAA will instruct aircraft as follows: 

  • Airborne aircraft inside the DRA and traveling to an underlying airport can continue and land. 
  • Airborne aircraft inside the DRA and traveling through are directed to exit expeditiously. 
  • Airborne aircraft outside the DRA but en route to it are directed not to enter. 
  • Aircraft at airports inside the DRA will not be cleared for takeoff. 
  • Aircraft at airports outside the DRA will be rerouted to avoid the DRA or be held on the ground.  

The FAA airspace management plan for the launch, including pre-coordinated DRAs, is shared with international air traffic control partners and other stakeholders in advance of the operation; however, the DRA procedures are generally not applied in non-U.S. airspace.   

The FAA, May 2025

Informing The Public

The FAA issues regular from the Air Traffic Control System Command Center, and it will advise of spaceflight activities:

Sample ATCSCC advisory

They also issue NOTAMs, (Notice to Airmen), notifications issued to pilots and other aviation personnel to alert them about potential hazards or changes in the National Airspace System (NAS) due to space launch or reentry activities:

Sample Space Related NOTAM

All of these activities require careful consideration and cooperation from all parties involved: launch operators, the Eastern Range, and the FAA itself. It is a complicated dance at times, and one that is sure to get even more complex as the launch rate from Florida increases.

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Mercury 7
Liftoff of Mercury-Redstone 3, with Alan Shepard aboard, May 5, 1961

Sixty-four years ago, the United States launched its first human being aboard a rocket. It was a tense time politically, and space flight was the new political football of the Cold War. The country’s pride had been injured by the Soviet Union’s accomplishing space feats before the US, but that day — May 5, 1961 — it was a day that restored pride and confidence in America’s capabilities as a nation. And it all happened here, of course, on the Space Coast.

Tales have been told uncounted times of the flight from Alan Shepard and top NASA officials’ points of view. But what about the locals? How did they see this flight? Talk of Titusville dug back into the local evening newspapers of the time, The Cocoa Tribune and the Orlando Evening Star.

Stories in both newspapers spoke of how nearly everyone in Cocoa, Titusville and all the beaches more or less stopped what they were doing to watch the launch ascending from its launch pad at Cape Canaveral Air Force Base. AM Radio was the preferred way to keep up with events for those watching in person, and the local stations were all too happy to provide moment by moment coverage.

Doug Dederer, One Of The First Local Reporters Covering Space

Newspaperman Doug Dederer set the scene for his coverage, which would be published the same day in the Cocoa Tribune. “Bobbing in a small craft a few hundred yards offshore myself and my companions waited patiently for the countdown to reach zero, Dederer began. “Our only communications were local radio stations who, at minus ten minutes, gave a running description of activities as reported at the press site.”

The Cocoa Tribune on May 5, 1961

“I watched the missile belch smoke and flame in its tail. It appeared to hover over the pad, then steadily the pulsing engines, gulping tons of fuel and liquid oxygen in seconds, lifted the Mercury spaceraft higher and higher.””

“At launch,” Dederer said, “The tremendous surge of feeling, compounded by thousands of written words, hundreds of interviews and a score of months knowing this and the other astronauts burst loose.”

“Tears flowed unashemedly and I didn’t care,” he stated bluntly.

Those feelings have been repeated many, many times since then, probably with every crewed launch that has flown from the Cape. In a time when crewed launches seem routine, they never are and there is always someone who is seeing it all unfold for the first time. Tears of happiness flowed that day, and they will again, as soon as the next crewed launch.

Mercury Redstone 3 in flight.
Photo: NASA

Dederer’s vision cleared in time for him to note, “The sea was surprisingly calm after the week’s stormy weather and one could easily read “United States” on the 83-foot long rocket.”

“The Redstone arched slighly on the east-northeast heading over the coastline and over our seaborne position,” Dederer said. “It passed overhead at 4,000 feet bathed in the brilliance of a new sun and a new era in American spacemanship.”

It may be safe to venture a guess that watching that liftoff made bobbing on the water offshore from Cape Canaveral worthwhile.

Dederer went on to write for Today, now Florida Today. He also ran his own publication, the Surfside Slant, in Cocoa Beach. Sadly, he passed away in 1985 at the age of 58.

The Orlando Evening Star from May 5, 1961 was far more effusive in its coverage of Alan Shepard’s first flight

Back onshore and across the rivers in Cocoa, business had come to a standstill to watch the liftoff. The Tribune reported that “Employees – and bosses — of businesses suspended operation when radions reported the final countdown began to conquer their excitement and return to the normal routine of their daily lives.”

The Tribune further reported “crowds of people” gathered along the Indian River to watch, though it was not clear exactly where on the river that was. Today, launches from the Cape are best seen from southern Titusville or from the beaches of the Banana River and Cape Canaveral, and back then couldn’t have been any different.

One thing was clear, however: something truly historical and extraordinary had happened that day in 1961, and those who were there to see it in person realized that from the start.

Alan Shepard’s Freedom 7 capsule is being picked up after its landing in the Atlantic Ocean.
Photo: NASA

Perhaps the Orlando Evening Star put things best in its coverage from the day: “True, the Russians’ Yuri beat him to it but that erases no of the glory from Alan Shepard. And his fellow countrymen are no less proud.”

Simple by today’s standard, the Mercury capsule worked well for the first US forays into crewed spaceflight.
via NASA
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Summer is nearly back on the Space Coast, with warm temperatures and a persistent threat of rain in the afternoon and evenings — typical weather here, and it will stay this way for several months. That being said, Atlas V was able to beat the weather last night and launched at the opening of its window, with liftoff at 7:01 PM ET after an apparently quiet countdown, save for some concerns about the energy potential of a nearby anvil cloud (Cumulonimbus incus) lingering near the launch pad before dissipating.

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Starlink 6-74's flight path, as seen from KARS Park on Merritt Island. Photo: Chris Leymarie / Florida Media Now
Starlink 6-74’s flight path, as seen from KARS Park on Merritt Island
Photo: Chris Leymarie / Florida Media Now

SpaceX launched their 49th mission of 2025 this evening from Cape Canaveral when the company sent the Starlink 6-74 mission to low Earth orbit aboard Falcon 9. Liftoff was at 9:52 PM EDT, right at the opening of the launch window.

After staging, Booster B1069 concluded its shift for the evening when it touched down on ASDS ‘A Shortfall Of Gravitas’, SpaceX’s automated drone ship. This was the booster’s 23rd flight, making it one of the greybeards in SpaceX’s fleet.

SpaceX provided this closeup of liftoff.

At 10:53 PM ET, SpaceX announced successful payload deployment, completing another successful mission for the company. This was their 475th mission.

Payload

28 Starlink satellites.

Launch Replay

Next Launch

Another group of Starlink satellites are scheduled to launch NET Sunday evening:

Falcon 9 Block 5 | Starlink Group 12-23 Mission Details
Mission Falcon 9 Block 5 | Starlink Group 12-23
Organization SpaceX
Location Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
Rocket Falcon 9 Block 5
Pad Space Launch Complex 40
Status To Be Confirmed
Status Info Awaiting official confirmation – current date is known with some certainty.
Window Opens Sunday, 04/27/2025 10:04:00 PM EDT
Window Closes Monday, 04/28/2025 2:04:00 AM EDT
Destination Low Earth Orbit
Mission Description A batch of satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation – SpaceX’s project for a space-based Internet communication system.
Read more

The FAA has announced that the public meeting for the SpaceX SLC-40 Enviromental Assessment that was originally scheduled for April 16th has been rescheduled to May 8, 2025. The original meeting was postponed due to a nationwide Zoom outage on that date earlier this month. Additionally, the public comment period has also been extended to May 15th.

For a summary and links to all original documents, please click here:

FAA Posts Draft Environmental Assessment For Increasing SLC-40 to 120 Falcon Launches A Year

Official Announcement

The FAA previously issued a Draft Environmental Assessment (EA) analyzing SpaceX’s proposal to increase Falcon 9 operations from 50 up to 120 per year from Space Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The draft EA also reviews the construction of a first-stage booster landing zone at the site with up to 34 landings per year. 

Due to technical difficulties associated with the nationwide Zoom platform outage, the virtual public meeting scheduled for April 16, 2025, was cancelled. The new meeting date is scheduled for May 8, 2025. In addition, the public comment period is extended and will close on May 15, 2025.

Registration is required to join the virtual public meeting. Those who registered for the cancelled meeting must re-register.

For registration, meeting and other details, click here: https://www.faa.gov/space/stakeholder_engagement/SpaceX_Falcon_SLC_40_EA

Talk of Titusville strongly encourages all interested parties to attend the virtual session as well as filing a written comment at the links above.

Anyone interested in attending the virtual session must register in advance. If you signed up for the cancelled event, you’ll need to register again.

For details on how to register, attend the meeting, or submit comments, visit: https://www.faa.gov/space/stakeholder_engagement/SpaceX_Falcon_SLC_40_EA

Starlink 9-47 launching from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
Starlink 9-47 launching from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
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Summer thunderstorms have yet to arrive on the Space Coast this year, but there were rumbles and roars a-plenty yesterday on the Eastern Range. First, in the wee hours, SpaceX launched CRS-32 from KSC, and its booster landed at Landing Zone 1 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Then, after sunset, the company completed another RTLS Falcon 9 launch, this time from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Liftoff was at 8:48 PM ET.

Eight minutes and seven seconds after liftoff, Booster B1090 completed its third flight successfully at Landing Zone 2 on the site of the former Launch Complex 13.

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NASA and SpaceX are set to launch the 32nd Commercial Resupply mission to the International Space Station from Kennedy Space Center on Monday. Launch time is set for 04:15:34 AM Monday morning in an instantaneous window.

File photo of a Falcon 9 in Dragon configuration on launch LC-39A at KSC
Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville

The flight Falcon 9’s first stage will land a few miles south at Landing Zone 1 in Cape Canaveral about 7-8 minutes after liftoff. That being said, a sonic boom will rattle the Space Coast area not long after the rumble of the liftoff fades.

This mission marks the 12th under NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services-2 (CRS-2) contract with SpaceX.

SpaceX CRS-32 Mission Details
Mission SpaceX CRS-32
Organization SpaceX
Location Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA
Rocket Falcon 9
Pad Launch Complex 39A
Status Go for Launch
Status Info Current T-0 confirmed by official or reliable sources.
Window Opens Monday, 04/21/2025 4:15:34 AM EDT
Window Closes Monday, 04/21/2025 4:15:34 AM EDT
Destination Low Earth Orbit
Mission Description The 32nd Commercial Resupply Services mission to the International Space Station operated by SpaceX. This flight, conducted under NASA’s CRS-2 contract, will deliver approximately 6,700 pounds of supplies and payloads, including critical materials to directly support science and research investigations onboard the orbiting laboratory. Notable experiments include studies on nanomaterial production, drug manufacturing advancements, and novel materials for aerospace, defense, energy, and robotics. The Cargo Dragon spacecraft, C209, is scheduled to autonomously dock to the station’s Harmony module and remain for about one month before returning to Earth with research and hardware for analysis.

Weather Forecast

Weather forecasts for Cape Canaveral on Monday indicate mostly cloudy conditions with a high of 81°F (27°C) and a low of 68°F (20°C). These conditions are generally favorable for a successful launch.​

Jimmy Taeger, a Launch Weather Officer of the 45th Weather Squadron of Space Launch Delta 45 said today that “Weather is looking really good for early next week. There’s a small chance of a cumulus cloud rule violation.”

“[That chance is] only about 10% for the primary launch day and the backup day, but that means 90% chance that the weather could be good,” Taeger concluded.

Trajectory

Online Viewing

NASA_ will have a livestream of the launch on their website and on YouTube: CRS-32 Launch. 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.

Remember that there is a delay between a launch stream 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.

Next Space Flight 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.

Launch Viewing: In Person

The best options for watching the launch: Northern Titusville parks on Washington Avenue / US-1 are your best bets: Space View Park, Sands Park, Rotary Riverfront Park.

The best options for watching the landing: beaches Cherie Down Park or 528W at the Banana River Bridge.

File photo of a Falcon 9 booster beginning its landing burn at LZ-1 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
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