Kennedy Space Center to host Starlink mission
Update: Liftoff of Falcon 9 with 21 Starlink satellites at 10:47 p.m. EDT Sunday from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A booster landing aboard a drone ship stationed in the Atlantic Ocean followed a short while later.Read our full post-launch story here.
It’s another SpaceX Falcon 9 launch day.
SpaceX teams are on track to launch a Falcon 9 rocket on Sunday from Kennedy Space Center in Florida with another batch of 21 of the company’s Starlink internet satellites.
Liftoff of the Starlink 6-12 mission is tentatively slated for 10:47 p.m. EDT.
If teams need them, there are five additional launch opportunities throughout the nearly four-hour launch window that extends until 11:05 p.m. EDT. Weather conditions should be good for liftoff.
Follow FLORIDA TODAY’s Space Team live launch coverage beginning 90 minutes before liftoff.
When is the SpaceX launch tonight:
Liftoff is tentatively set for 10:47 p.m. EDT, with a nearly four-hour launch window on Sunday that extends until 11:05 p.m. EDT. Should teams need it, other launch opportunities are available around the same time, 24 hours later on Monday.
If schedules hold, this would become the Space Coast’s 46th launch this year.
If successful, it will also mark SpaceX’s 62nd mission launched this year from its four launch pads across Florida, California, and Texas, which includes the first liftoff of the company’s prototype Starship and Super Heavy vehicle in April.
What is the weather outlook for the Falcon 9 launch:
Space Force forecasters last reported weather conditions to be 90% “go” throughout the entirety of the launch window.
“On Sunday evening, and the beginning of the launch window, we can expect favorable, dry conditions and northeasterly surface winds,” forecasters with the Space Force’s 45th Weather Squadron said in a report Saturday.
“The primary concern will be if a low-topped cumulus cloud associated with the onshore flow lingers close to the launch pad,” forecasters said.
Conditions for a backup launch opportunity on Monday remain nearly the same.
Here’s everything else you need to know:
- Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39A will host.
- The payload is the company’s next batch of Starlink internet-beaming satellites.
- The 230-foot Falcon 9 rocket will follow a southeasterly trajectory threading between Florida and the Bahamas.
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- If it launches on time, it will mark the Space Coast’s 46th launch this year.
- No local sonic booms with this mission.
- The 130-foot first-stage booster will target a drone ship landing about eight minutes after liftoff.
When’s the next launch from Florida’s Space Coast?
Florida’s next liftoff is slated to be a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket.
The national security mission, a joint effort between the U.S. Space Force and the National Reconnaissance Office, is set to carry secretive payloads to geostationary orbit. Last week, the NROL-107 mission was grounded when ULA returned the rocket back to the protection of the company’s vertical integration facility until Hurricane Idalia passed.
A new launch date for that mission hasn’t yet been identified.
“We will work with our customer and the range to confirm our next launch attempt, and a new date will be provided once it is safe to launch,” ULA said last week.
When that mission does launch, follow FLORIDA TODAY’s Space Team live launch coverage beginning 90 minutes before liftoff.
Beyond that, more SpaceX Starlink missions are expected to be launched from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, but the company hasn’t yet announced when the next mission is targeted to liftoff.
For the latest schedule updates, visit floridatoday.com/launchschedule.
Contact Jamie Groh at [email protected] and follow her on X at @AlteredJamie.
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