A SpaceX rocket carrying a new batch of Starlink internet satellites launched into orbit from Florida today (Sept. 5), then returned to Earth in a flawless landing.
The used Falcon 9 rocket launched 21 Starlink satellites from a pad at Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and landed on a SpaceX drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. Liftoff occurred at 11:33 a.m. EDT (1533 GMT), after a one-day delay due to bad weather.
The Starlink 8-11 mission carried aloft SpaceX's 7,001st Starlink satellite, according to launch statistics kept by astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell, as the 21 satellites joined 6,980 others launched by SpaceX since 2018 (though many have since been retired). The new Starlink batch includes 13 "Direct to Cell" satellites to provide internet coverage directly to smartphones, SpaceX has said. The company is building a vast Starlink megaconstellation in low Earth orbit to provide global internet coverage.
Just over 8 minutes after liftoff, the Falcon 9 rocket's first-stage booster returned to Earth to land on SpaceX's drone ship Just Read The Instructions in the Atlantic Ocean. The launch marked the 15th flight of this particular booster, nine of which were Starlink missions, SpaceX wrote in a mission description.
The Falcon 9 landing was the third successful touchdown of a SpaceX rocket in a week after the company's failed landing attempt on Aug. 28 during an otherwise successful Starlink flight. SpaceX launched two other Starlink missions on Aug. 31 after receiving clearance to fly from the Federal Aviation Administration, which is investigating the failed landing.
Meanwhile, SpaceX is preparing for yet another rocket launch in a cross-country doubleheader.
Another Falcon 9 rocket is scheduled to launch a batch of classified spy satellites for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office at 11:20 p.m. EDT (8:20 p.m. PDT/0320 Sept. 6 GMT) from a pad at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. That mission, called NROL-113, will mark the 20th launch of its Falcon 9 booster, SpaceX said.
You'll be able to watch that NROL-113 launch live on SpaceX's X page (formerly Twitter), starting five minutes before liftoff.
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