Falcon 9 pushing through the atmosphere creates a vapor cone on the fairings, April 17, 2024 Photo: Charles Boyer / ToT
SpaceX got Falcon 9 to work right at the beginning of tonight’s launch window when it launched the Starlink 6-51 mission at 5:26 PM EDT into the bluebird skies of the Space Coast. The payload was another 23 Starlink satellites to join the company’s ever-growing constellation of thousands of satellites in low-Earth orbit that provide Internet service to underserved areas globally.
Booster Touches Down Safely Near Bahamas
About eight and a half minutes after liftoff, Booster B1077 touched down safely on SpaceX’s ‘Just Read The Instructions’ automated droneship located offshore in the Atlantic Ocean northeast of the Bahamas, completing its 12th mission safely.
Falcon 9 Ascending: as it near the speed of sound, Falcon 9 created a contrail on April 17, 2024 Photo: Charles Boyer / ToT
Booster B1077
Booster B1077 successfully completed its 12th flight. It entered service on October 5, 2022 and was previously used for Crew-5, GPS III Space Vehicle 06, Inmarsat I6-F2, CRS-28, Intelsat G-37, NG-20, and now six Starlink missions, and safely touched down at sea on the Automated Spaceport Drone Ship ‘Just Read The Instructions.’
The drone ship will return to Port Canaveral, where it will be returned to SpaceX’s Hangar X facility at Kennedy Space Center for inspection, refurbishment and preparation for its next mission.
SpaceXBooster B1077
Flight
Mission
Date
1
Crew-5
10/15/2023
2
GPS III SV06
01/18/2023
3
Inmarsat-6 F2
02/18/2023
4
Starlink Group 5-10
03/29/2023
5
Dragon CRS-2 SpX-28
06/05/2023
6
Galaxy 37
08/03/2023
7
Starlink Group 6-13
09/01/2023
8
Starlink Group 6-25
10/30/2023
9
Starlink Group 6-33
12/07/2023
10
Northrup Grumman NG-20
01/30/2024
11
Starlink Group 6-43
03/10/2024
12
Starlink Group 6-51
04/17/2023
Booster 1077 flight record as of April 17, 2024
Next Launch
The wait won’t be long for the next launch from the Space Coast: weather and spacecraft readiness permitting, SpaceX is planning another Starlink launch Thursday, April 18, this time from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Date: NET April 18, 2024
Organization: SpaceX
Mission: Starlink 6-52
Rocket: Falcon 9
Launch Site: SLC -40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
Launch Time: 06:40-11:11 PM EDT (Tentative and subject to change)
Payload: 23 Starink Satellites
Keep in mind that launch dates and times change often. Launch attempts can be scrubbed at any time due to weather, technical reasons or range conditions.
Representative SpaceX Booster Rising. Photo: Charles Boyer / ToT
SpaceX is planning to launch the first of three Falcon 9 missions over the next five days today. There’s another launch scheduled for tomorrow, Thursday, April 18, and a final one set for Monday, April 22nd. All three will be ferrying a tranche of Starlink Group 6 satellites to orbit. Today’s launch is from Pad LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center.
Weather
The 45th Weather Squadron has forecasted a 10% Probability of Violation, meaning there is a 90% chance of acceptable weather during the launch window. Their primary concern is the Thick Clouds rule.
Trajectory
Southeast, as has been customary for Group 6 Starlink payloads.
Landing
Landing is planned to be on the autonomous spaceport drone ship (ASDS) ‘Just Read The Instructions’ (JRTI) which is stationed in the Atlantic Ocean northeast of the Bahamas.
After the landing, JRTI will return to Port Canaveral with the booster. It will then be returned to SpaceX’s Hangar X facility on Roberts Road inside Kennedy Space Center for inspection, refurbishment and preparation for its next mission.
Booster: B1077
Booster B1077 will be making its 12th flight. Previously, B1077 was used for Crew-5, GPS III Space Vehicle 06, Inmarsat I6-F2, CRS-28, Intelsat G-37, NG-20, and five Starlink missions.
SpaceXBooster B1077
Flight
Mission
Date
1
Crew-5
10/15/2023
2
GPS III SV06
01/18/2023
3
Inmarsat-6 F2
02/18/2023
4
Starlink Group 5-10
03/29/2023
5
Dragon CRS-2 SpX-28
06/05/2023
6
Galaxy 37
08/03/2023
7
Starlink Group 6-13
09/01/2023
8
Starlink Group 6-25
10/30/2023
9
Starlink Group 6-33
12/07/2023
10
Northrup Grumman NG-20
01/30/2024
11
Starlink Group 6-43
03/10/2024
Booster 1077 flight record as of April 16, 2024
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 6-51 Mission Page.
Spaceflight Now will begin its live launch feed one hour prior to liftoff. SFN on Youtube.
Launch Viewing: In Person
Today’s launch is from LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center, which means that the best direct views of liftoff are at either the Max Brewer Bridge in Titusville, or the northern parks on US-1 in Titusville.
Video of a Playalinda launch.
If the launch is prior to 8PM EDT, Playalinda Beach out on the Cape Canaveral National Seashore will be open to spectators, that is, if KSC Security and the National Park Service allow viewers for the launch. This varies launch to launch, but as a general rule, they have allowed spectators to watch Starlink launches from the beach. You could be as close as 4.25 miles from the launch pad at liftoff.
Generally speaking, if it is not a national-security mission (for example, a National Reconnaissance Office payload) or a NASA mission, spectators have been allowed at Playalinda. That’s by no means a certainty, however, and it would be very wise to call ahead before making the trip out.
Cape Canaveral National Seashore Phone: 386 428-3384 x0
If you are going to Playalinda, and if it is open, remember:
Get there at least two hours early, or better, earlier than that. Lines are long at the entry gate and they will only allow as many spectator vehicles as there are parking space available.
If the launch L-0 time is moved to after 8PM, you will have to leave Playalinda, as the National Park Service is very strict about closing hours.
Cape Canaveral National Seashore has a fee to get in and cash is not accepted. Debit and credit cards are okay, or if you have one of the National Park Service’s passes for the Seashore or the National Parks, that will work as well.
Cellphone service is spotty at best and often non-existant at Playalinda. Don’t count on your cellphone to keep up with the launch, because you might get signal or you might not.
You are not allowed to view from the pullouts on Beach Road. They will have stanchions blocking them. You’ll have to park and you’ll have to go to the beach.
Refreshments are not available. There are no stores at Cape Canaveral National Seashore, and that means you’ll need to bring drinks and food if you want any while you’re there.
Rangers will keep you back a certain distance from the launch area. If the beach is open, you’ll still not be able to go all the way down to the fence that demarcates the normal security zone. There’s a line that spectators can’t go past somewhat north of the fence. That’s for safety and security.
Also, as part of both Kennedy Space Center and the US Park system, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge is under federal jurisdiction and that means if you happen to get a ticket out there, you’ll be heading to federal court. Best thing to do is strictly obey traffic laws. Don’t speed!
If you’re not planning to go to Playalinda, the best direct views of liftoff are at either at the northern Titusville parks off of US1 / Washington Avenue. the Max Brewer Bridge in Titusville, or the northern parks on US-1 in Titusville.
The ascending rocket will also be visible on Cocoa Beach, Cocoa Beach Pier, Jetty Park Pier after liftoff when Falcon 9 clears any obstructions.
The ascending rocket will also be visible on the beaches after liftoff when Falcon 9 clears any obstructions.
Weather is forecast to be in the 70º’s around launch time.
Booster B1062’s 20th Ascent Path Seen from FL 528W in Cape Canaveral. Fishermen were lighting the edges of the river and enjoying the weather as much as the crowd that gathered there to watch the liftoff.
SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 tonight from Pad SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and sent another twenty-three Starlink satellites to orbit. Liftoff occurred at 09:22 PM EDT on a crisp, clear spring evening on the Space Coast.
Crowds were heavier than normal along the usual spectator spots, and no one left disappointed — long after staging and for almost seven minutes the second stage could be seen rising and building orbital speed.
As one man said to someone beside me, “Enjoy this, [it] won’t be long until the air is thick and hot as soup.” He’s right. If anything, Friday’s weather was one of the last of Florida spring weather: cool, but not cold with pinpoint stars and crescent moon lighting the sky. It won’t be long until humidity rises and the nightly costal front storms will be a concern for mission managers and launch spectators alike.
Booster B1062 lifts the OneWeb 17 Mission in 2023 Photo: Charles Boyer / ToT
Starlink launches are almost as routine as airline flights these days, as SpaceX has had regular service from the Cape and Vandenberg Space Force Base in order to add to their ever-growing constellation of low-Earth orbit based communications satellites. Every few days, there’s another Starlink mission.
Key to the regular pace of their launches is the reuseability of the company’s Falcon 9 rockets. While the second stage is new for each flight, the fairings and of course the booster used for each launch is reused with regularity, greatly reducing the costs of payload delivery. This has not only allowed SpaceX to drastically reduce its cost through reducing the capital expenditure of building an entirely new rocket for each launch, its regular rotation of several boosters in its stable has allowed them to maintain a torrid pace where over 6,000 Starlink satellites have been placed in orbit by Falcon 9 rockets.
SpaceX has flown four boosters nineteen times so far: B1058, which was retired after a post-recovery incident led to the spacecraft toppling at sea and being damaged; B1060, now being refurbished prior to its next flight; B1061, which is awaiting flight assignment, and B1062, which is now being prepared for flight NET Friday for the Starlink 6-49 mission. Liftoff is planned to happen tomorrow, April 12th, between 9:22 PM and 12:48 AM EDT on April 13th.
B0162 Has Earned Its Soot
On their website, SpaceX confirmed this information: “This will be the 20th flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched GPS III Space Vehicle 04, GPS III Space Vehicle 05, Inspiration4, Ax-1, Nilesat 301, OneWeb Launch 17, ARABSAT BADR-8, and 12 Starlink missions. Following stage separation, the first stage will land on the A Shortfall of Gravitas droneship, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.”
While the company did not specifically mention B1062, as you can see from its flight record below, SpaceX has identified B1062 will be the first to get to 20 launches.
Booster B1062 lofting Starlink 6-23 towards orbit in 2023 Photo: Charles Boyer / ToT
Booster B1062 Record
B1062 was first used for a GPS launch in 2020, and its last launch was in March of this year when it launched Starlink 6-44. Its most notable missions so far are Inspiration 4 and Axiom-1, both of which were crewed. Perhaps almost as notable will be the 20th flight, which could come as soon as tomorrow evening.
SpaceX / Eutelsat 36 lifts off from LC-39A at KSC. This was the view from Playalinda Beach near Wilson’s Corner in Brevard County Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
SpaceX launched two Falcon 9 rockets to orbit Saturday: first, at 5:52 PM EDT Eutelsat 36D from LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center, then at 9:30 PM, Starlink 6-45 from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station — a three-hour, thirty-minute gap between launches. Not one to rest on their laurels, the company also has slated another Starlink launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California between 11:54 PM and 2:30 AM EDT later on this evening.
EUTEL 36D Mission
The Eutelsat mission opened today’s launches at 5:52 PM EDT on a day that Florida tourist boards dream of: a warm sunny day with light winds that brought crowds to the beaches and riverfront not only to enjoy seeing a launch but also simply enjoy the nearly perfect weather.
Falcon 9 created a “smoke ring” around the time it was reaching MAX-Q this afternoon. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
Tourists and locals lined not only the usual spectator spots on US-1 in Titusville, but also with an at-capacity Playalinda Beach on Cape Canaveral National Seashore, where lines to enter were long and parking lots were eventually full. Those that made into Playalinda enjoyed a picture-perfect launch at the start of the launch window, with Falcon 9 climbing into a blue sky.
The payload was a telecommunications satellite, EUTELSAT 36D, which will replace the company’s EUTELSAT 36B at 36° East. According to Eutelsat, “36° East is a key orbital slot for broadcasters. Home to two powerful satellites, EUTELSAT 36B and EUTELSAT 36C, together they support the broadcast business of several major anchor customers.” Eutelsat 36D will eventually replace the 36B satellite, and will “[A]ssure all the main legacy missions of EUTELSAT 36B, with enhancements to coverage areas and performance.”
A boy sits on his father’s shoulders and watches Falcon 9 ascending from Pad LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center on March 30. 2024. Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville
EUTELSAT 36D Booster
SpaceX used Booster B1076 for the mission, which successfully completed its twelfth flight after safely touching down aboard the Automated Spaceport Drone Ship ‘A Shortfall of Gravitas’ which was stationed in the Atlantic Ocean. Previously, B1076 had supported the NASA CRS-26 ISS resupply mission, OneWeb Launch 16, Intelsat IS-40e, O3b mPOWER, Ovzon 3, and six Starlink missions.
Starlink 6-45 Mission
Later Saturday evening, SpaceX sent another batch of 23 Starlink v2 Mini satellites to orbit, adding to the company’s ever-growing Starlink constellation used to provide global Internet connectivity. The launch was at 9:30 PM EDT, and was visible over much of Florida, with people as far as Crystal River, which is located about 90 minutes north of Tampa near the Gulf of Mexico.
Starlink 6-45 rising towards orbit as seen from the west coast of Florida near Spring Hill. Photo: Mark Stone, Florida Media Now
Starlink 6-45 Booster
For that mission, SpaceX used Booster B1067 for the18th time. Previously launched CRS-22, Crew-3, Turksat 5B, Crew-4, CRS-25, Eutelsat HOTBIRD 13G, mPOWER-a, PSN SATRIA, Telkomsat Merah Putih 2 and now has completed nine Starlink missions. It safely touched down on ASDS ‘A Shortfall of Gravitas’ about eight and one-half minutes after launching.
Next Launch
SpaceX will launch another tranche of Starlink satellites on Friday, April 5th from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on the Starlink 6-47 mission.
The launch window for this mission has not been announced by the company, but if it follows the bulk of other Group 6 Starlink missions, launch time will be sometime in the evening. Stay tuned to Talk of Titusville for a mission preview later this week as more information becomes available.
Spectators in the surf at Playalinda Beach watching a SpaceX Falcon 9 lift off from LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center. Photo: Charles Boyer / ToT
Opening Day in Major League Baseball was just a couple of days ago, so it’s fitting in a way that the Space Coast will get its own kind of double-header tomorrow: SpaceX is planning to launch Eutelsat 36D from LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center between 5:52 PM and 8:00 PM EDT, and then between 9:00 PM and 10:31 PM EDT, another batch of Internet connectivty satellites with the Starlink 6-46 mission from their pad at SLC-40 at Cape Cananveral Space Force Station.
Both missions will be aboard the company’s Falcon 9 rockets, and both will land offshore on Automated Spaceport Drone Ships (ASDS) — ‘Just Read The Instructions’ for Eutelsat, and ‘A Shortfall Of Gravitas’ for the Starlink Mission. Two other SpaceX boats — ‘Bob’ and ‘Doug’ are also out to sea, and they will be retrieving the fairings for each mission after they are jettisoned by the ascending rockets.
All of those vessels will then return to Port Canaveral after several days, where their cargo will be offloaded and returned to SpaceX’s facility Hangar X at Kennedy Space Center for inspection, refurbishment and potential reuse.
Boosters
The boosters SpaceX is planning to use for these missions have not been disclosed by the company yet.
Trajectory
Eutelsat will take a nearly due East trajectory from Kennedy Space Center, flying towards an equatorial orbit.
Starlink 6-45 will take the well-trodden path as other Group 6 Starlink missions: southeastward.
Weather
According to the 45th Weather Squadron of the US Space Force, “Weather conditions will be very favorable for Saturday evening’s launch attempt.”
Eutelsat 36
Starlink 6-45
The 45th’s forecast for Starlink 6-45 is all but identical to their Eutelsat POV prognistication:
In-Person Viewing
Eutelsat
The Eutelsat mission may offer an intriguing possibility: it’s planned for late afternoon, NET 5:52 PM EDT, with the window going to 8:00 PM. That means there’s a possibility that Playalinda Beach out on the Cape Canaveral National Seashore will be open to spectators, that is, if KSC Security and the National Park Service allow viewers for the launch.
Generally speaking, if it is not a national-security mission (for example, a National Reconnaissance Office payload) or a NASA mission, spectators have been allowed at Playalinda. That’s by no means a certainty, however, and it would be very wise to call ahead before making the trip out.
Cape Canaveral National Seashore Phone: 386 428-3384 x0
If Playalinda is open, remember:
Get there at least two hours early, or better, earlier than that. Lines are long at the entry gate and they will only allow as many spectator vehicles as there are parking space available.
Cape Canaveral National Seashore has a fee to get in and cash is not accepted. Debit and credit cards are okay, or if you have one of the National Park Service’s passes for the Seashore or the National Parks, that will work as well.
Cellphone service is spotty at best and often non-existant at Playalinda. Don’t count on your cellphone to keep up with the launch, because you might get signal or you might not.
You are not allowed to view from the pullouts on Beach Road. They will have stanchions blocking them. You’ll have to park and you’ll have to go to the beach.
Refreshments are not available. There are no stores at Cape Canaveral National Seashore, and that means you’ll need to bring drinks and food if you want any while you’re there.
Rangers will keep you back a certain distance from the launch area. If the beach is open, you’ll still not be able to go all the way down to the fence that demarcates the normal security zone. There’s a line that spectators can’t go past somewhat north of the fence. That’s for safety and security.
Also, as part of both Kennedy Space Center and the US Park system, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge is under federal jurisdiction and that means if you happen to get a ticket out there, you’ll be heading to federal court. Best thing to do is strictly obey traffic laws. Don’t speed!
If you’re not planning to go to Playalinda, the best direct views of liftoff are at either at the northern Titusville parks off of US1 / Washington Avenue. the Max Brewer Bridge in Titusville, or the northern parks on US-1 in Titusville.
The ascending rocket will also be visible on Cocoa Beach, Cocoa Beach Pier, Jetty Park Pier after liftoff when Falcon 9 clears any obstructions.
Starlink 6-45
The Starlink 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.
Liftoff of SpaceX Starlink 6-46. Photo: SpaceX Livestream
SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 booster carrying 23 more Starlink V2 Mini satellites to orbit tonight from Pad SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Station. Launch was at 7:42 PM EDT, and was successful and the booster used for the mission — B1078 — safely touched down off the Bahamas eight minutes and twenty-five seconds later.
SpaceX has now more launched more than 6,000 Starlink satellites for their orbiting constellation that provides Internet service to more than two million customers globally. Nearly 5,700 of those satellites are currently operational.
When a given Starlink satellite is designated inactive, it is purposely sent for a safe re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere, where it burns up safely. The same will happen to the Falcon 9 second stage used for tonight’s mission: it too will be sent back into the atmosphere, where it will also burn up safely. These maneuvers prevent Starlink from creating any “space junk.”
Booster: B1078
Booster B1078 successfully completed its 8th flight tonight.
B1078 was first entered service in March, 2023 when it launched Stephen Bowen, Warren Hoburg, Sultan Al Neyadi and Andrey Fedyaev to the International Space Station as part of NASA/SpaceX’s Crew-6 for the Commercial Crew Program. Since that maiden launch, it has also lofted SES O3b mPOWER, USSF-124, and now five Starlink missions.
After the landing, ASOG will return to Port Canaveral with the booster. It will then be returned to SpaceX’s Hangar X facility on Roberts Road inside Kennedy Space Center for inspection, refurbishment and possible preparation for its next mission, which will be its 20th.
Booster B1078
Flight Number
Payload
Date
1
Crew-6
March 2, 2023
2
O3b mPOWER 3 & 4
April 28, 2023
3
Starlink 6-4
June 4, 2023
4
Starlink 6-8
August 7, 2023
5
Starlink 6-16
September 16, 2023
6
Starlink 6-31
December 3, 2023
7
USSF-124
February 14, 2024
8
Starlink 6-46
March 25, 2024
Booster B1078 as of March 25, 2024
Next Launch
United Launch Alliance is planning to launch its final Delta IV Heavy from SLC-37 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Delta IV Heavy is the world’s second highest-capacity rocket in operation. After this launch, SLC-37 will be shuttered and is currently being studied by the US Space Force and SpaceX for potential use for the company’s Starship Heavy.
The launch window extends from 1:40 until 6:51 PM EDT.
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 launched a Falcon 9 booster carrying 23 more Starlink V2 Mini satellites to orbit tonight from Pad LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center. Launch was at 11:09 PM EDT, and was successful. The launch was late in the launch window after two pushbacks on the planned L-0 time due to shifting weather here on the Space Coast.
Space X Falcon 9, partial timelapse photo over the Indian River. Space Coast residents may recognize “Scruffy The Tug Boat” — an accidental landmark on the Indian River on FL 528 West. It’s an accidental landmark that’s been aground in the same spot for years. Photo: Charles Boyer / ToT
SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 booster carrying 23 more Starlink V2 Mini satellites to orbit tonight from Pad LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center. Launch was at 11:09 PM EDT, and was successful. The launch was late in the launch window after two pushbacks on the planned L-0 time due to shifting weather here on the Space Coast.
A large crowd of spectators lined the parks in Titusville earlier this evening, waiting for the lifitoff of Starlin 6-42. Those crowds thinned as delays moved the L-0 later into the evening, but there was a friendly, party-like atmosphere as people waited. Photo: Charles Boyer / ToT
There are now more than 6,000 Starlink satellites in orbit, with each successive tranche that SpaceX expanding the reach and bandwidth of their orbital-based Internet service. According to the company, the service is growing in popularity and has over two million active users.
Landing was aboard SpaceX’s Automated Spaceport Drone Ship (ASDS) “Just Read The Instructions” northeast of the Bahamas in the Atlantic Ocean about eight and a half minutes after launching.
“Just Read The Instructions” will return to Port Canaveral in a few days, and afterwards, B1060 will return to SpaceX’s Hanger X facility at Kennedy Space Center for inspection, refurbishment and presumably reuse on its next mission.
Arond 75 minutes before liftoff, storms with embedded lighting were visible in the eastern skies. Source: Melbourne National Weather Service radar
Booster
SpaceX flew Booster B1060 for the nineteenth time tonight. Previous missions include GPS III-3, Turksat 5A, Transporter-2, Intelsat G-33/G-34, Transporter-6, Intuitive Machines IM-1, and 12 Starlink missions.
B1060 joins B1061 and B1062 as active boosters that have flown 19 missions. One (or all) of those three are likely to fly their twentieth mission at some point in the future.
Booster B-1060
Flight Number
Payload
Date
1
GPS III SV03
June 30, 2020
2
Starlink L11
September 3, 2020
3
Starlink L14
October 24, 2020
4
Türksat 5A
January 8, 2021
5
Starlink L18
February 4. 2021
6
Starlink L22
March 24, 2021
7
Starlink L24
April 29, 2021
8
Transporter-2
June 20, 2021
9
Starlink 4-3
December 2, 2021
10
Starlink 4-6
January 19, 2022
11
Starlink 4-9
March 3, 2022
12
Starlink 4-14
April 21. 2022
13
Starlink 4-19
June 17, 2022
14
Galaxy 34 / 35
October 8, 2022
15
Transporter-6
January 3. 2023
16
Starlink 5-15
July 16, 2023
17
Starlink 6-18
September 24, 2024
18
IM-1 Odysseus Lander
February 15, 2024
19
Starlink 6-42
March 23, 2024
Booster B1060 record as of March, 24. 2024
Next Launch
Space Coast residents won’t have to wait long for another launch: SpaceX plans to launch Starlink 6-46 from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Monday, March 25, 2024.
The launch window extends from 5:00 until 9:31 PM EDT.
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