This morning, SpaceX is set to launch its latest batch of internet-radiating Starlink satellites into orbit, and the company uses one of its most spacecraft rockets for orbit. The Falcon 9 rocket launched on today’s mission has been to space and back five times before, and if all goes well, it could become the first SpaceX booster to be launched for the sixth time.
At the top of the rocket are 58 of SpaceX’s own Starlink satellites loaded as well as three small hitchhiking probes. The added trio are Earth-observing SkySat satellites operated by the company Planet. It’s the second time SkySats will ride on a SpaceX Starlink mission; three SkySats also flew into orbit in June with 58 Starlink satellites. Typical launches consist of 60 Starlink satellites, but SpaceX sometimes makes room for companies willing to pay for a ride to the orbit.
To date, SpaceX has launched nearly 600 satellites for its Starlink initiative, aimed at creating a worldwide constellation of spaceflight to provide broadband coverage of the orbit. Beta testing of the system seems to have started for a small group of users who have performed speed tests from Starlink via Ookla. Details of SpaceX’s Starlink tests found within the source code of the company’s website revealed that beta testing will begin in rural Washington and then expand to the northern United States and southern Canada.
Liftoff for today’s launch is scheduled for 10:31 AM ET from the launch site of SpaceX at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The SkySats are meant to be deployed first, just 12.5 minutes after launch, followed by the Starlink satellites about half an hour there. Following the launch, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket will attempt to land on one of the company’s autonomous drone ships in the Atlantic Ocean. If successful, it will mark a record-breaking sixth landing for the Falcon 9, and launch the path for the vehicle for an unusual seventh time.
So far, the weather seems okay for launch, with an 80 percent chance that conditions will be favorable. SpaceX’s live coverage will begin about 15 minutes before launch, so check back to see the company’s 11th Starlink mission off the ground.
