SpaceX launched another batch of its Starlink internet satellites from Florida today (May 8), on the first leg of a planned spaceflight doubleheader for the company.
A Falcon 9 rocket topped with 23 Starlink craft lifted off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida today at 2:42 p.m. EDT (1842 GMT), at the very end of a nearly four-hour window.
The Falcon 9's first stage came back to Earth as planned about 8.5 minutes later, touching down on the droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas, which was stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.
Related: Starlink satellite train: How to see and track it in the night sky
It was the 3rd launch and landing for this particular first stage, according to a SpaceX mission description. The booster had one Starlink mission and the Crew-8 astronaut launch under its belt before today.
The Falcon 9's upper stage, meanwhile, will continue carrying the Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit, where they will be deployed about 65 minutes after liftoff.
SpaceX has now launched 47 orbital missions in 2024, 32 of which have been devoted to building out the Starlink broadband megaconstellation.
And there's another Starlink launch on tap today as well: SpaceX intends to launch 20 more Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California tonight, during a nearly three-hour window that opens at 10:48 p.m. EDT (0248 GMT on May 9).
Editor's note: This story was updated at 2:56 p.m. EDT on May 8 with news of successful launch and rocket landing.
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