CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched a new group of 60 Starlink Internet satellites into orbit late Monday (February 15) but was unable to land on a floating platform at sea.
The second stage Falcon 9 booster, supplemented by the 60 broadband spacecraft, lifted from Space Launch Complex 40 here at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 22:59 EST (0359 GMT on February 16). About nine minutes later, the rocket’s first phase returns to Earth to attempt its sixth landing on SpaceX’s drone “Of course I still love you” in the Atlantic, but misses its target.
“It looks like we’re not getting our booster on Of course I still love it tonight,” SpaceX manufacturing engineer Jessica Anderson said during comments on the live launch. “It’s a pity we did not repair this booster, but our second phase is still on a nominal track.”
SpaceX prefers to recycle its Falcon 9 rocket phases for reuse, but the company has also repeatedly said that delivering an aircraft cargo in orbit is always the primary mission.
Video: See how SpaceX’s Falcon 9 launches 60 Starlink satellites
Related: SpaceX’s Starlink satellite mega constellation in photos
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One of SpaceX’s regular kites propelled this latest Starlink mission into orbit. The booster, named B1059, previously transported two different SpaceX Dragon cargo supplies to the International Space Station – CRS-19 in December 2019 and CRS-20 in March 2020 – a Starlink mission last June, an Earth-observing satellite for Argentina. (SAOCOM-1B in August 2020), and an espionage satellite for the US government as part of the NROL-108 mission in December.
Tonight’s launch was the first of two planned Starlink uplifts within a week; a further 60 satellites will fly on another Falcon 9 early Wednesday (February 17). The rapid succession is due to the fact that SpaceX recently had to shuffle its planned Starlink missions, as weather and hardware-related issues are presented a bit of a challenge.
This mission, called Starlink 19, moved forward after SpaceX’s 18th Starlink mission launched on 4 February. Both flights jumped Starlink 17, which was originally scheduled to launch on February 1st. Scheduled to fly regularly on one of SpaceX’s two record-setting kites, B1049, the mission has been delayed several times and is expected to launch on February 17 just after midnight.
During initial mission planning, SpaceX aims to launch two Starlink missions within hours of each other – a first for the space coast since 1966 when a Gemini rocket was followed just 99 minutes later by an Atlas Agena. Eventually, the dual missions did not take place, but in an unprecedented move for the era of commercial spaceflight, the Eastern Range (the agency that oversees launches along the East Coast) approved two missions to start quickly in a row.
This is an achievement we may see happening later, especially as more launch providers become active and more and more launches start from Florida. Last year there was a record of 31 launches for the year, and 2021 could be even busier as the 45th Space Wing prepares itself for at least 40 missions.
Related: Watch the evolution of SpaceX’s rockets in pictures
Double the launches
Originally, it was to be launched on Sunday night, but SpaceX had to stop due to bad weather at the launch site. Thunderstorms blew across Florida this past weekend, preventing the flight from taking off.
Conditions improved on Monday and the Falcon 9 was able to fly, which was the fifth launch of the year for SpaceX and enabled the company to look forward to its next mission. Another stack of Starlink satellites will blow off from SpaceX’s other launch site in Florida at Road 39A of NASA’s Kennedy Space Center here.
The mission was also the overall 108th flight for SpaceX’s workhorse Falcon 9. This would have meant the 75th rocket landing for the company if the Falcon 9 had held its touch.
To repair its recurring boosters, SpaceX uses two massive floating landing platforms – ‘Of course I still like you’ and ‘Just read the instructions’ – in addition to its landing pads, which enable the company to launch (and land more rockets) ). Usually drone ships see most of the action because it requires more fuel reserves to land back inland than to land at sea.
The version of Falcon 9 we see today is a saturated version of its predecessors that is capable of flying multiple times with only minor upgrades in between. This is due to a series of upgrades Falcon 9 received in 2018 – including a more robust thermal protection system, titanium grid fins and a more durable mezzanine floor – that make reuse easier.
As such, SpaceX has allowed the fleet of more capable rockets to fly more missions. The company launched a record 26 times in 2020, with 22 of the flights on veteran rockets.
The company plans to surpass the record in 2021 as it hopes to launch at least 40 rockets between the California and Florida launch facilities.
Building a mega constellation
With tonight’s launch success, SpaceX now has more than 1,000 Starlink satellites in orbit. And there are still many launches to come; The initial Starlink constellation of SpaceX will consist of 1440 satellites and the company has asked for approval tens of thousands more.
The company has launched its massive constellation, which currently surpasses all other constellations in orbit, with an overarching goal of connecting the world.
To that end, SpaceX has designed a fleet of flat-panel broadband satellites that will fly across the earth, providing users with worldwide Internet coverage.
Tonight’s flight comes just days after SpaceX began offering pre-orders to the public. Last week, the company launched its potential customer website on a first-come, first-served basis while the company conducts an extensive international and domestic beta testing phase.
Prospective users can, according to the website, order equipment and sign up for the service, which can take six months or longer before it becomes available.
SpaceX started the beta test phase ‘better than nothing’ in 2020, as the company let its employees put the emerging satellite service through its loop.
The company’s founder and CEO, Elon Musk, said there must be between 500-800 Starlink satellites in orbit before coverage can begin to roll out. After reaching the milestone, the company began testing its new service.
Early reports from employees indicated that the service worked and even enabled streaming of several high-definition programs simultaneously. Shortly thereafter, SpaceX invited users to start testing its service while launching more and more satellites.
The company was given permission to start expanding its service to users in the UK earlier this year, and even bullied its first Canadian customer last year.
The Pikangikum First Nation was able to use the service to connect its members and provide access to training programs, telemedicine and more.
SpaceX’s very big year: Space launches, Starship tests and more
Parachutes
GO Ms. Tree and GO Ms Chief, SpaceX’s two just-equipped boats are also stationed in the Atlantic Ocean. The dynamic duo will repair the rocket’s nose cone (also known as a payload cap) after the two pieces fall to the ground again.
Equipped with navigation software and special parachutes, the two halves of the protective shell lead themselves back to earth and are likely to be created out of the water after being splashed.
Sometimes SpaceX does catch the parachutes in the air, but it depends on wind and weather. Repair attempts are usually announced by SpaceX 45 minutes after removal.
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