Starlink Mission #2
by Norman Peay
Title
Starlink Mission #2
Artist
Norman Peay
Medium
Photograph - Digital Print
Description
SpaceX Launches 60 Starlink Satellites, Nails Rocket Landing in Record-Breaking Flight
By Amy Thompson 7 hours ago
SpaceX now operates more satellites than any other company. Thousands more will follow.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — SpaceX kicked off 2020 with the record-breaking launch of its third batch of Starlink satellites. Sixty of the internet-beaming satellites launched atop a used Falcon 9 booster on Monday, Jan. 6.
The sooty Falcon 9 rocket roared to life at 9:19 p.m. EST (0219 GMT Tuesday), lifting off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station here in Florida. Its nine Merlin 1D engines lit up the night sky above the space coast as it climbed towards orbit.
"Liftoff! Go, Starlink, go, Falcon [on the] Space Force inaugural launch," a SpaceX launch commentator said. The mission was the first launch under the watch of the newly minted U.S. Space Force, a military branch that President Donald Trump signed into law last month.
The satellites rode into space atop a reused Falcon 9 first stage, marking the second time the company has flown a booster four times. The star of this mission, dubbed B1049.4 by SpaceX, previously lofted the first batch of Starlink satellites as well as the Iridium-8 and Telstar 18 VANTAGE missions.
Video: Watch SpaceX's Starlink-2 Falcon 9 Rocket Landing!
SpaceX successfully launched 60 new Starlink broadband internet satellites into orbit on a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida on Jan. 6, 2020. The launch made SpaceX the operator of the largest satellite fleet in space today.
The Starlink-2 mission is actually the third Starlink launch for SpaceX, following launches in May 2019 and November 2019. Starlink-2 carried 60 more satellites into orbit for the constellation for a total of 180 Starlink satellites.
Here, SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket first stage (left) can be seen deploying its grid fins to help its return to Earth. The lights of the U.S. East Coast can be seen in the background.
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July 30th, 2020
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