After two previous delays, including an abort-at-ignition and a booster swap, SpaceX launched the ‘From One To Many’ payload for Astranis tonight from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral aboard Falcon 9. Liftoff was at 12:00 AM EST (05:00 UTC) under broken skies on the Space Coast.
SpaceX Falcon 9 lifted off at the stroke of midnight December 29th. It was carrying the Astranis ‘From One To Many’ payload to orbit. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
Around 8.5 minutes later, Falcon 9 Booster B1083 completed its seventh mission successfully when it touched down on ASDS ‘A Shortfall Of Gravitas’ stationed downrange in the Atlantic Ocean. ASOG and B1083 will now return to Port Canaveral, where the booster will be offloaded and returned to SpaceX’s Hangar X at Kennedy Space Center for inspection and preparation for its eighth flight.
At 3:02 AM EST, Astranis CEO said, “Great news– we have acquired and established command authority over all four spacecraft.”
Falcon 9 venting late in the countdown before its launch on January 29, 2024 Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
Payload
Four Astranis MicroGEO Block 2 communications satellite were delivered to a geosynchronous transfer orbit. Once they have been deployed, they will travel to their final orbital locations under their own power.
Launch Replay
Next Launch
SpaceX is planning to launch Starlink 12-6 from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center NET Monday, December 30, 2024. The launch window opens at 12:00 AM EST (0500 UTC) and closes at 3:28 AM the same day.
Date: NET December 30, 2024
Organization: SpaceX
Mission: Starlink 12-6
Rocket: Falcon 9
Launch Site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center
Launch Window: 12:00 – 03:28 AM EST
Payload: Starlink satellites for SpaceX’s ISP constellation.
A timelapse of the flight path of Falcon 9 / Astranis From One To Many on December 29, 2024 Photo: Charles Boyer / ToT
Blue Origin New Glenn on the launch mount at LC-36. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville.
Blue Origin had a very good day on Friday: they completed their first-ever integrated static fire of New Glenn, after having received a five-year license for New Glenn launch and recovery operations for Cape Canaveral.m
Launch License
An FAA launch license was perhaps the last major regulatory milestone for Blue Origin in its launch campaign for the New Glenn maiden launch. Late Friday afternoon, the FAA announced that it had granted the company the necessary legal clearance to fly the vehicle:
“The FAA is committed to enabling the success of the U.S. commercial space transportation industry without compromising public safety,” said the Associate Administrator for Commercial Space Transportation Kelvin B. Coleman. “By working closely with Blue Origin, the FAA issued this new launch license well in advance of the statutory deadline for the historic maiden flight of New Glenn.”
Under the license, Blue Origin can conduct orbital missions from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida with the New Glenn first stage landing on a barge in the Atlantic Ocean. It is valid for five years.
Blue Completes First Static Fire Of New Glenn
In recent weeks, New Glenn has mostly been vertical at Launch Complex 36 as Blue Origin ran tests, honed procedures and rehearsed the terminal countdown of the rocket before its first flight. Those tests culminated Friday when launch controllers went all the way down to T-0 and briefly ignited New Glenn’s seven BE-4 main engines all together for the first time.
New Glenn during its integrated static fire Photo: Blue Origin
Blue Origin stated in a press release that the data obtained during testing will be utilized to finalize day-of-launch timelines, confirm expected performance, and correlate models to real-world test data.
“This is a monumental milestone and a glimpse of what’s just around the corner for New Glenn’s first launch,” said Jarrett Jones, SVP, New Glenn. “Today’s success proves that our rigorous approach to testing–combined with our incredible tooling and design engineering–is working as intended.”
The tanking test included a full run-through of the terminal count sequence, testing the hand-off authority to and from the flight computer, and collecting fluid validation data. The first stage (GS1) tanks were filled and pressed with liquefied natural gas (LNG) and liquid oxygen (LOX), and the second stage (GS2) with liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen–both to representative NG-1 set points.
The formal NG-1 Wet Dress Rehearsal demonstrated the final launch procedures leading into the hotfire engine run. All seven engines performed nominally, firing for 24 seconds, including at 100% thrust for 13 seconds. The test also demonstrated New Glenn’s autogenous pressurization system, which self-generates gases to pressurize GS1’s propellant tanks.
Blue Origin, September 27, 2024
According to Blue Origin, “The campaign met all objectives and marks the final major test prior to launch.”
New Glenn is now expected to launch on January 6, 2025.
A SpaceX Crew Dragon on the launch pad earlier in 2024. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
Vast, the aerospace company best known for building one of the first commercial space station segments, announced today that they have secured a deal with SpaceX for two Crew Dragon missions to the International Space Station (ISS) in support of Vast’s future bid for NASA’s private astronaut missions (PAM). The missions will fly on Falcon 9 if VAST if the Vast PAM bid is accepted by the agency.
“Enabling payload and crewed missions to the ISS is a key part of Vast’s strategy, allowing us to further our collaboration with NASA and global space agencies. These missions not only strengthen our expertise in human spaceflight operations and collaboration with NASA, but also position Vast as a leading contender to deliver the next-generation successor to the ISS, advancing the future of human space exploration,” said Max Haot, Chief Executive Officer of Vast.
Artist’s rendering of the Vast Haven-1 space station Credit: VAST.
The two missions are an addition to the contract Vast has with SpaceX to launch the Haven-1 space station to low-Earth orbit followed by a subsequent Dragon mission to fly crew to the commercial space station.
“I am excited to work with Vast as they build more opportunities and destinations for more people to travel amongst the stars,” said Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceX’s President and Chief Operating Officer.
SpaceX launched two satellites for Luxembourgish satellite company SES today aboard a Falcon 9. Liftoff was at 5:26 PM EST (22:26 UTC) from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida and into unsettled skies with storms lingering in the Space Coast region.
Falcon 9 illuminated the cloud bottoms as it rose towards space today. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
SpaceX chose to delay a liftoff attempt until the end of the launch window that opened at 3:59 PM EST and closed again at 5:26 PM, probably because of showers, potential lightning and/or cumulus clouds in the area.
Storms were rolling in from the southeast bringing rain, wind and some thunder
Around 8.5 minutes after liftoff, Booster B1090 earned its first soot when it completed its first mission successfully by touching down safely offshore on ASDS ‘Just Read The Instructions’ offshore in the Atlantic. JRTI and B1090 will return to Port Canaveral, where B1090 will be offloaded and returned to Hangar X for preparation for its next flight.
Booster B1090 made a successful debut today. Note the lack of soot, that is deposited during return to land operations. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
Payload
O3b mPower 7 & 8 are two telecommunications satellites in a planned constellation of eleven when completed. The pair were built by Boeing, and are operated by SES, a company headquarted in Luxembourg.
According to SES, “O3b mPOWER is SES’s second-generation medium earth orbit (MEO) system located 8,000km above Earth. To date, SES has launched six out of 13 O3b mPOWER high-throughput and low-latency satellites and has built an extensive ground infrastructure around the world. The system started providing global connectivity services in April 2024.”
SES rendering of a O3b mPOWER satellite in orbit. Graphic: SES
Launch Replay
Next Launch
Date: NET December 20, 2024
Organization: SpaceX
Mission: 4x Astranis MicroGEO
Rocket: Falcon 9
Launch Site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
SpaceX launched an undisclosed payload for the US Space Force tonight from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral aboard Falcon 9. Liftoff was at 7:52 EST (00:52 UTC) under heavy skies on the Space Coast.
Falcon 9 RRTS-1 Liftoff, as seen on the SpaceX livestream.
Around 8.5 minutes later, Falcon 9 Booster B1085 completed its fourth mission successfully when it touched down on ASDS ‘A Shortfall Of Gravitas’ stationed off of the coast of the Carolinas. ASOG and B1085 will now return to Port Canaveral, where the booster will be offloaded and returned to SpaceX’s Hangar X at Kennedy Space Center for inspection and preparation for its fifth flight.
Payload
Good question. Those who know aren’t saying, but evidence points towards a GPS satellite according to a number of sources who closely analyzed the publicly available information of the flight path for this launch and then compared that to other missions.
Others were more specific, saying it is the GPS-IIIA satellite. If so, that would mean that the first of the third-generation GPS satellites has been launched.
Launch Replay
Next Launch
SpaceX is planning to launch the O3b mPower 7 & 8 mission from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center NET Tuesday, December 17, 2024. The launch window opens at 3:59 PM EST and closes at 5:26 PM the same day.
Weather is a major watch item for this flight, with a 45% Probability of Violation at any point in the launch window, according to the December 16 launch forecast issued by the US Space Force’s 45th Weather Squadron.
Rockets make a lot of noise when they launch. That’s a given fact, and part of life for Space Coast residents.
There is a rocket launch from the Cape every few days, and depending how close one is the launch pad, the sound is like distant thunder that fades away after a minute or two, or, for some who live much closer to the launch site, the initial noise of a launch is much more thunderous. Some claim that those launch sounds are intense enough to cause damage to their property.
Falcon 9 flying to space on September 29, 2024. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
Depending on the launch trajectory and weather conditions, a SpaceX Falcon 9’s rumble on liftoff can be heard as far away as Melbourne, some 33 miles from Space Launch Complex 40 in Cape Canaveral. Other towns closer to the launch pad will also hear the sound, of course, and at varying levels. When that same booster returns to land at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Landing Zone 1, the sonic boom is even louder in many areas, with some saying that in Rockledge the sonic boom is louder than what one might experience in Titusville.
New Study
That in mind, Space Coast residents may find results from a new study released in November in the Journal of the Acoustic Society of America interesting: in it, the authors measured ambient sounds in several different locations surrounding a Starship Heavy launch in Boca Chica, and they found that the sound pressure from the huge new rocket to be a great deal louder than current rockets, such as a Falcon 9:
Starship launch noise to Space Launch System and Falcon 9 shows that Starship is substantially louder; the far-field noise produced during a Starship launch is at least ten times that of Falcon 9.
Measurement locations near the Starship launch were shown in the paper. Measurements were taken as far as 22 miles away. Graphic: Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
The study found that:
From OSHA Technical Manual (OTM) Section III: Chapter 5
The town of Port Isabel (∼10 km/6.2 mi) saw a maximum of ∼105 dB SPL.
The town of Laguna Vista (∼20 km/12.4 mi) sees a maximum of ~90 dB SPL.
At 10km (6.2 miles) and 20 km (12.4 miles), the booster flyback boom results in a [SPL] of about 125 and 110 dB SPL, respectively.
110 dB SPL is roughly that of being in a room with a trombone.
What About Starship Compared to SLS?
Also in the paper, a comparison of Starship and SLS noise impacts was made. The result?
“Although it is difficult to identify trends across metric, vehicle, and distance, the most important conclusion […] is that a Starship launch represents a substantially greater noise source than SLS and Falcon 9. A look across the four metrics and two distances for SLS relative to Starship suggests that a Starship launch is the equivalent of 4–6 SLS launches in terms of noise impact, despite SLS producing more than half of Starship’s thrust. “
We’ve Heard This Before: Saturn V Made A Lot of Noise In Its Day
Probably the loudest rocket ever launched on the Space Coast was the Saturn V. The huge moon rocket was known to physically shake buildings and the ground within five miles or so from the launch pad, and one of the first things old-timers mention when they talk about a Saturn V it how loud it was. The published measurements from the time back that up as well.
Contemporary news reports the day after Apollo 4 talked about the sound level of the rocket Miami Herald, November 10, 1967
The 194-200 dB SPL of noise of a launching Saturn V at the pad would kill someone within a certain distance — a distance often cited as one mile, though some Apollo veterans have said 1000 yards, or about a kilometer. The reason why? The mechanical effects of the sound pressure would be intense enough to liquify that person’s organs.
Keep in mind that’s at the launch pad and everyone but astronauts were kept a safe distance away. As for the astronauts, the design of the launch pad helped deflect the sound, sound suppression systems dampened it a bit and finally, they were well insulated from the outside environment.
Shock waves of a Saturn V were clearly visible during the launch of Apollo 17 in 1972. Video: NASA
For buildings farther from the launch pad during a Saturn V launch, shakes and rattles were quite common, something Walter Cronkite dramatically described in the launch of Apollo 4 in 1967, from the CBS press box some 3.6 miles from the launch:
No water-deluge sound suppression was used for the Apollo 4 launch, and all other subsequent Saturn V launches employed that technique to reduce the noise at the launchpad and beyond.
Instead, Apollo 4 could be used as a gauge of the top end extreme sounds heard from launches on the Space Coast. Today, all rocket launches from the Cape have some form of sound suppression. Starship will be the same.
The Saturn V generated a sound level of 91 decibels from a distance of 9384 meters (6.2 miles) from the launch pad, according to NASA. From 12.4 miles — the distance from Pad LC-39A to the western end of the Max Brewer Bridge in Titusville, a sound level of 85 decibels was heard. At Lori Wilson Park (19 miles) around 80 decibels.
Those launches were indeed loud, but not dangerously so, and residents of the time collectively shrugged it off as part of living close to the Cape.
Cape Studies Are Underway
Sound studies and projections are part of the Environmental Impact Study underway for Starship at LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center as well as another EIS for SLC-37 or a new SLC-50 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Local residents should pay close attention to them, as this will be the first and most immediate effect of a Starship Heavy launch from the Eastern Range.
A rendering of Vaya’s Dauntless rocket. Credit: Vaya Space
Vaya Space has secured a multi-launch contract to deploy up to 250 satellites for Space Telecommunications, Inc.’s small-satellite constellation using its Dauntless rocket, with launches starting in 2027.
“Today’s announcement is validation of the hard work of our entire team and a testament to the vision of our partners at Space Telecommunications,” said Kevin Lowdermilk, Vaya Space CEO. “This collaboration underscores the transformative potential of hybrid propulsion in shaping the future of satellite launch and space exploration.”
Who Is Vaya Space?
VayaSpace a space and defense company, was founded in 2017 by Sid Gutierrez, the former Space Shuttle Commander and NASA’s first US-born Hispanic astronaut as Rocket Crafters, based in Cocoa. Since then, the company has developed a hybrid propulsion system and rocket technologies that are non-explosive, non-toxic, using solid rocket fuel is produced from 99% recycled post-industrial thermoplastics.
A Vaya Space Vortex engine test in late 2023 Photo: Vaya Space
The company’s Dauntless Block I is a ~60-foot (18.3) two-stage rocket, and is about the same size as a Rocket Lab Electron. It is planned to be able to launch at least 500 kilograms to orbit, versus 320 kilograms for Electron to Low-Earth Orbit.
Unlike Electron, a kerolox (kerosene-liquid oxygen system), Vaya’s Vortex solid rocket motors make Dauntless a nearly portable system that can be launched virtually anywhere. Dauntless is planned to launch for the first time in 2026. The company plans to launch from LC-13 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Vaya also has a Dauntless Block II in development, which will increase the maximum payload to orbit to at least 1100 kilograms, giving the system many more mission applications for which it will be suitable.
Comments On The New Contract
“Working with Vaya Space ensures our constellation will achieve the highest level of precision and reliability, which is critical to our mission of connecting communities worldwide,” Tae Oh, Founder of Space Telecommunications.
“This partnership represents a pivotal moment for both companies,” said Mary Baldino, Director of Sales and Marketing at Vaya Space. “Our affordable and reliable hybrid rocket technology positions Dauntless to meet the growing demands of satellite constellations like Space Telecommunications’, ensuring timely, precise deployment and maximum operational efficiency.”
“The launch campaign will mark a significant milestone in transitioning Dauntless from its inaugural mission to a regular launch cadence,” said Vaya Chairman Sid Gutierrez. “Designed, built, and tested on Florida’s Space Coast, Dauntless and its hybrid propulsion system are designed to bring simplicity, safety, affordability, and reliability to orbital launch.”
Lather, rinse, repeat: SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 carrying the Starlink 12-5 mission shortly after midnight this morning. Liftoff was at 12:10 AM EST from Space Launch Complex 40 in Cape Canaveral and into cool, clear, star-studded skies over the Space Coast.
Starlink 12-5’s path through the sky this morning. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
Around 8.3 minutes later, Falcon 9 touched down offshore on ASDS ‘A Shortfall Of Gravitas’, successfully concluding its 2nd mission. ‘A Shortfall Of Gravitas’ had been pre-positioned offshore downrange and will now return to Port Canaveral where the booster will be returned to SpaceX’s Hangar X for inspection and, presumably, preparation for its 3rd flight.
It is believed that the booster used for this morning’s flight is B1086, which was first used as a side-booster for the Falcon Heavy GOES-U launch earlier this year, but SpaceX only stated “This is the second flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched GOES-U.”
Spectators who lined the usual spots in Cape Canaveral, Titusville and other Space Coast locations were able to watch Falcon 9 for quite a long while in the clear skies: from 528 West at the Banana River Bridge, Falcon 9’s second stage was visible for at least 6.5 minutes after launch, while the booster Entry Burn was in plain sight for the entirety of that phase of flight. Such are winter night launches into dry air and clear skies.
Falcon 9 and Starlink 12-5 in flight, as seen in Orlando. Photo: Ed Cordero / Florida Media Now
Payload
On their mission web page, SpaceX stated that tonight’s payload was “23 Starlink satellites, including 13 with Direct to Cell capability.”
Those satellites will join the nearly 7,000 other Starlink satellites as part of SpaceX’s internet connectivity service serving over 4 million customers in more than 100 countries world-wide.
Launch Replay
By The Numbers
60th launch from SLC-40 this year
991st Cape Canaveral launch
129th SpaceX launch in 2024
2.7 days between SpaceX launches in 2024
441st SpaceX launch all time
384th Falcon-family booster landing (includes Falcon Heavy cores)
89th landing on A Shortfall Of Gravitas
56th consecutive successful Falcon 9 launch
Next Launch
SpaceX is planning to launch the O3b mPower 7 & 8 mission from Space Launch Complex 40 in Cape Canaveral NET Friday, December 13, 2024. The launch window opens at 3:55 PM EST and closes at 5:55 PM the same day.
Date: NET December 13, 2024
Organization: SpaceX
Mission: O3b mPower 7 & 8
Rocket: Falcon 9
Launch Site: Space Launch Complex 40, CCSFS
Launch Window: 3:55 – 5:55 PM EST
Payload: Telecommunication satellites for SES
Keep in mind that launch dates and times change often. Launch attempts can be scrubbed anytime due to weather, technical reasons, or range conditions.
SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 carrying the SXM-9 satellite for Sirius-XM today. Liftoff was at 11:10 AM EST from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center and into hazy but blue skies over Florida.
December 5, 2024. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
Around 8.25 minutes later, Falcon 9 booster B1076 touched down offshore on ASDS ‘Just Read The Instructions’, successfully concluding its 19th mission. ‘Just Read The Instructions’ had been pre-positioned offshore downrange and will now return to Port Canaveral where B1076 will be returned to SpaceX’s Hangar X for inspection and, presumably, preparation for its 20th flight.
Falcon 9 with SXM-9 lifts off on December 5, 2024. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of TitusvilleFalcon 9 with SXM-9 ascends to orbit on December 5, 2024. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of TitusvilleA vapor cone on the fairings of Falcon 9 with SXM-9 aboard as it ascends to orbit on December 5, 2024. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of TitusvilleFalcon 9 with SXM-9 ascends to orbit on December 5, 2024. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of TitusvilleFalcon 9 with SXM-9 ascends to orbit on December 5, 2024. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of TitusvilleFalcon 9 with SXM-9 lifts off on December 5, 2024. 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 orbit about the same time as the booster was touching down below on the JRTI. At 11:45 AM EST, SpaceX announced that the launch was a success when it said that SXM-9 had been successfully deployed.
SXM-9 is a replacement for the failed SXM-7, which was launched in December 2020 and successfully reached geostationary orbit. During the commissioning and initial testing of SXM-7 on orbit, a payload failure occurred and it was declared a total loss in February 2021. SXM-9 will ascend under its own power to its final orbital location in Geosynchronous Orbit, a prograde, low inclination orbit around the Earth having a period of 23 hours 56 minutes 4 seconds.
Launch Replay
Next Launch
On Sunday, December 8, 2024, SpaceX is planning to launch the Starlink 12-5 mission from Space Launch Complex 40 in Cape Canaveral. The launch window opens at 12:10 AM EST and closes at 4:10 AM the same day. Effectively, the launch is late Saturday evening, so include that into any plans you may be making to attend or view the launch.
Date: NET December 8, 2024
Organization: SpaceX
Mission: Starlink 12-5
Rocket: Falcon 9
Launch Site: Space Launch Complex 40, CCSFS
Launch Window: 12:10 – 4:10 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.
Booster B1067 nearing the end of its 24th ascent. It would later land safely aboard ‘A Shortfall Of Gravitas.’ Photo: Ed Cordero / FMN
SpaceX launched another group of Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit this morning. Liftoff was at 5:13 AM EST from Space Launch Complex 40 from from Cape Canaveral.
Around 8.5 minutes after liftoff, Booster B1067 touched down safely on the company’s drone ship ‘A Shortfall Of Gravitas’ to complete its record-breaking 24th mission successfully, while the second stage and payload continued to low Earth orbit. At about the same time the booster landed, the initial orbit for the payload was achieved, with a short orbit rounding burn just before payload deployment.
B1067 flew today 23 days after its Koreasat 6A mission on November 11, 2024. Its previous flights include the CRS-22 and CRS-25 ISS resupply missions, NASA Crew 3, Crew 4 to ISS, the TelkomSat-113BT, Turksat-5B, Koreasat-6A, Eutelsat HOTBIRD-F2, Galileo L13, mPOWER-A, PSN MFS satellites and now,13 Starlink missions. After landing and mow safely aboard ‘A Shortfall of Gravitas’, the booster will return to Port Canaveral, where SpaceX will unload it and transport it to their Hangar X facility for inspection and hopefully preparation for its next flight, which would be its 25th.
Launch Replay
Next Launch
SpaceX will shift over to LC-39A to launch the Sirius XM-9 satellite for Liberty Media on Thursday, December 5. The satellite will enhance coverage of the companies satellite radio service.
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