CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lit up the predawn sky early this morning (March 11) as it carried a new batch of 60 Starlink internet satellites into orbit, before nailing its landing on a floating platform at sea. The two-stage Falcon 9 booster lifted off from Space Launch Complex 40 here at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 3:13 a.m. EST (0813 GMT). About 8.5 minutes later, the rocket’s reusable first stage returned to Earth for its sixth landing, touching down on one of SpaceX’s drone ships. The floating platform, called “Just Read the Instructions,” was stationed out in the Atlantic Ocean, about 400 miles (630 kilometers) downrange. It was a clear night in Florida for the mission’s second attempt. The launch was originally planned to occur on Tuesday night (March 9) but was pushed back so SpaceX could conduct more prelaunch checkouts. Weather forecasters at the U.S. Space Force’s 45th Weather Squadron predicted a 90% chance of favorable conditions for launch this morning, and Mother Nature delivered.
This latest liftoff marked SpaceX’s seventh mission of 2021 and the company’s 21st 60-satellite Starlink launch overall. It starred one of the better known Falcon 9 first stages in the fleet
Emblazoned with a now-sooty NASA worm logo, B1058 is the booster that delivered two NASA astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) in May of last year, returning orbital human spaceflight to U.S. soil with SpaceX’s Demo-2 mission. The veteran launcher also delivered a cargo Dragon spacecraft to the ISS, a communications satellite for South Korea’s military and the most satellites ever launched on a single mission (Transporter-1). Today, B1058 carried its second stack of Starlink satellites. The predawn spectacle marked the 110th overall flight of a Falcon 9 rocket and the 56th reflight of a Falcon 9 first stage. It was the sixth mission for this particular booster, and SpaceX set a new record for fastest turnaround time for a rocket with this many flights under its belt. B1058 last flew on Jan. 24, and it blasted off again from the same launch pad this morning, just 45 days later; the previous record for such a veteran booster was 59 days. SpaceX relies heavily on its fleet of veteran rockets, which have enabled the company to keep up with its launch ambitions. However, SpaceX has always stressed that, while booster recovery is beneficial, the main goal of each mission is to successfully deliver the payload to space. The company recovered a first stage for the first time in 2015, when a Falcon 9 booster touched down on terra firma at one of the company’s Florida landing pads. Ever since, SpaceX has been striving to better understand the recovery process and how much wear and tear each launch puts on the rocket. With each recovery attempt, the company has been able to refine its process and reduce times between flights. SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk has said that his long-term vision involves rockets that resemble airplanes, in the sense that they lift off, land, refuel and lift off again in short order. Musk has said, for example, that a goal of SpaceX is to launch, land, and then launch and land the same rocket again within 24 hours — a milestone that has not yet been reached. While SpaceX makes landing rockets look easy, a recent anomaly shows that it’s not always a slam dunk. On Feb. 15, the company broke a 24-booster recovery streak when a Falcon 9 first stage, designated B1059, failed to land on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean after launching a different batch of Starlink satellites into orbit. The mishap was attributed to “heat damage,” with company officials elaborating on that during a recent teleconference. Benji Reed, SpaceX’s senior director for human spaceflight, said that one of the booster’s protective engine covers failed, allowing hot gases from the engine to leak into places it wasn’t supposed to, causing an engine to shut down during flight. This shutdown ultimately caused the rocket to miss its mark on the drone ship. With this morning’s successful liftoff, SpaceX has now launched more than 1,200 Starlink satellites into orbit, including some that are no longer operational. The company has planned for its initial Starlink constellation to be 1,440 strong but has sought approval for tens of thousands more. There are many more launches coming as SpaceX fills out this growing megaconstellation. The company launched its Starlink program with one major goal: to connect the globe. To that end, SpaceX designed a fleet of flat-paneled broadband satellites that fly over Earth, providing internet coverage to users around the world. SpaceX recently started taking preorders for its public rollout. Potential users could sign up for the service via a website, pay a deposit and then be notified when coverage is offered in their area. The rollout is on a first-come, first-serve basis while the company is conducting an extensive international and domestic beta-testing phase. In advance of this launch, SpaceX rolled out service to Germany and New Zealand and is working to expand its existing service in the United Kingdom. But that’s not all. Recent filings indicate that the company is seeking permission to expand its services to moving vehicles, including planes, boats and RVs. According to Musk, the current Starlink user terminals, which facilitate access to the satellites overhead, are too large to put in cars, so for now, it’s targeting bigger vehicles. Nick Note: This starlink.com is the satellite system you need to switch to. It will be faster then your broadband and their is no comparison to existing satellite systems(really low latency) because the starlink satelits are much closer to earth. I “obtianed” a test system. And it is unfuckingbelivable. I am outside the present footpring so i only get covereage a hour or two a day. You need to go to their web sight and sign up right now. Roll out will be late next year. But each launch increases coverage. Cost is around $500 for the equiptment and $85 a monnth for service and their will be a TV package. Hear me… this is how internet will be delivered. I canot belive they gave him a license for thousands of low orbit satellite.. He caught the big boys sleeping…Sign up today…..starlink.com…… This is the future.