SpaceX launched one other huge batch of its Starlink net satellites to orbit this day (Aug. 19) and likewise aced a rocket touchdown at sea.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying 53 Starlink spacecraft lifted off from Cape Canaveral Home Power Station in Florida this day at, as it’s going to be ample, 3: 21 p.m. EDT (1921 GMT).
About 9 minutes into the mission, the Falcon 9‘s first stage came serve to Earth for a vertical touchdown on the SpaceX droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas, which changed into stationed within the Atlantic Ocean off the Florida flit.
Associated: SpaceX’s Starlink megaconstellation launches in photos
It changed into the ninth commence and touchdown for this explicit Falcon 9 first stage, in line with a SpaceX mission description (opens in unusual tab).
The rocket’s upper stage, meanwhile, continued its system upward, at closing deploying the 53 satellites into low Earth orbit as planned quite of over 15 minutes after commence, SpaceX confirmed by the use of Twitter (opens in unusual tab).
SpaceX has already launched extra than 3,000 spacecraft for its Starlink constellation, which beams broadband carrier to possibilities around the globe.
Many of these satellites like long gone up this twelve months. SpaceX has now performed 37 orbital launches in 2022 to this level, 23 of them devoted Starlink missions. That is a fable-breaking commence cadence; the corporate’s earlier mark for lots of orbital missions in a twelve months changed into 31, region in 2021.
This day’s Starlink commence occurred only some hours after thought to be one of SpaceX’s robotic Dragon cargo capsules departed the World Home Station. The Dragon is predicted to return to Earth with an ocean splashdown the following day afternoon (Aug. 20).
Editor’s indicate: This sage changed into updated at 3: 55 p.m. ET on Aug. 19 with data of profitable liftoff, rocket touchdown and satellite tv for pc deploy.
Mike Wall is the author of “Out There (opens in unusual tab)” (Colossal Central Publishing, 2018; illustrated by Karl Tate), a book regarding the scrutinize alien life. Apply him on Twitter @michaeldwall (opens in unusual tab). Apply us on Twitter @Spacedotcom (opens in unusual tab) or on Fb (opens in unusual tab).