SpaceX launches 25 Starlink satellites on Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base – Spaceflight Now
SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rockets from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California Friday morning, carrying 25 broadband web satellites for SpaceX’s low Earth orbit megaconstellation.
Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 4 East occurred at 6:57:59 am PDT (10:57:59 am EDT / 1457:59 UTC). This was the corporate’s twenty fifth mission supporting its low Earth orbit constellation to this point this yr.
SpaceX launched the Starlink 17-31 mission utilizing the Falcon 9 first stage booster with the tail quantity 1071. This was its thirty second flight following the launch of missions, similar to NASA’s SWOT, 5 missions for the National Reconnaissance Office and 5 SmallSat rideshare missions.
Rather less than 8.5 minutes after liftoff, B1071 landed on the drone ship, ‘Of Course I Still Love You,’ positioned within the Pacific Ocean. This was the 183rd touchdown on this vessel and the 584th booster touchdown for SpaceX.
Satellite deployment occurred a bit of greater than an hour after the launch, bringing SpaceX as much as 674 Starlink satellites flown to this point in 2026.
