SpaceX launching 27 Starlink satellites today in 1st flight since Starship explosion – Space.com
Liftoff is scheduled for 10:13 a.m. ET on Monday (Jan. 20).
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SpaceX is set to launch another batch of its Starlink internet satellites Monday (Jan. 20), four days after a test flight of the company’s Starship megarocket ended in an explosion.A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 27 Starlink craft is scheduled to lift off from California’s Vandenberg Space Force Base Sunday, during a four-hour window that opens at 10:13 a.m. EST (1513 GMT; 7:13 a.m. local time).SpaceX will webcast the action live via its X account, beginning about five minutes before launch.If all goes according to plan, the Falcon 9’s first stage will return to Earth about eight minutes after liftoff, touching down in the Pacific Ocean on the drone ship “Of Course I Still Love You.”It will be the 10th launch and landing for this particular booster, according to a SpaceX mission description. Seven of its nine flights to date have been Starlink missions.The Falcon 9’s upper stage, meanwhile, will haul the 27 Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit, deploying them there 61.5 minutes after liftoff.Related: Starlink satellite train: how to see and track it in the night skyBreaking space news, the latest updates on rocket launches, skywatching events and more!— SpaceX: Facts about Elon Musk’s private spaceflight company— Starlink satellites: Facts, tracking and impact on astronomy— SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches on record-breaking 24th flight (video)Monday’s launch will be the ninth Falcon 9 mission of 2025 and SpaceX’s 10th liftoff of the year overall.The other launch was the seventh-ever test flight of SpaceX’s Starship megarocket, which took place on Thursday (Jan. 16) from South Texas.That flight was a mixed bag for the company. Starship’s giant first-stage booster came back to its launch site for a dramatic catch by the tower’s “chopstick” arms, but the vehicle’s upper stage exloded just 8.5 minutes after liftoff, apparently after suffering a propellant leak.Editor’s note: This story was updated at 12:15 p.m. ET on Jan. 18 with the new launch date of Jan. 19, then again at 11:15 a.m. ET on Jan. 19 with the new Jan. 20 target date.Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: community@space.com.Michael Wall is a Senior Space Writer with Space.com and joined the team in 2010. He primarily covers exoplanets, spaceflight and military space, but has been known to dabble in the space art beat. His book about the search for alien life, “Out There,” was published on Nov. 13, 2018. Before becoming a science writer, Michael worked as a herpetologist and wildlife biologist. He has a Ph.D. in evolutionary biology from the University of Sydney, Australia, a bachelor’s degree from the University of Arizona, and a graduate certificate in science writing from the University of California, Santa Cruz. To find out what his latest project is, you can follow Michael on Twitter.Space Mountain at 50: Five nods to NASA from the Walt Disney World rideLittle house on the (moon) prairie: Artist’s ‘Moonhouse’ set to lift off on lunar landerScientists discover ‘sunken worlds’ hidden deep within Earth’s mantle that shouldn’t be thereSpace is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.©
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