SpaceX to launch 24 Starlink satellites on Falcon 9 rocket launch from Vandenberg SFB – Spaceflight Now
SpaceX is getting ready to launch its Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base Tuesday night time to ship a batch of its Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit.
The mission, dubbed Starlink 17-42, will add one other 24 broadband web satellites to a constellation of spacecraft that consists of greater than 10,000 spacecraft. More than 600 of these satellites assist direct-to-device capabilities.
Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 4 East is scheduled for 7:46 pm PDT (10:46 pm EDT / 0246 UTC). The rocket will fly on a south-southwesterly trajectory upon leaving the pad.
Spaceflight Now can have stay protection starting about half-hour prior to liftoff.
SpaceX will launch the mission utilizing the Falcon 9 first stage booster with the tail quantity B1103. This will likely be its second launch after flying the Starlink 17-35 mission on April 6.
The booster was beforehand assigned to the NROL-172 mission, however was swapped for B1097 prior to launch. SpaceX did not provide an evidence for the swap.
Somewhat greater than eight minutes after liftoff, B1103 will goal a touchdown on the drone ship ‘Of Course I Still Love You.’ If profitable, this would be the 197th touchdown on this vessel and the 612th booster touchdown to date.
