SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, aims to launch 53 Starlink satellites from Florida late Friday night, just days after celebrating its 20th anniversary.
The spacecraft will be launched from Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on a Falcon 9 rocket at 11:23 p.m. EDT. Because liftoff is immediate, UPI said any difficulties might cause a 24-hour delay till Saturday night.
You may watch it live here in Science Times, courtesy of SpaceX, or you can check their official YouTube channel directly. Coverage is planned to begin about 15 mins before liftoff.
SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from space launch complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center, Florida on March 30, 2017, with an SES communications satellite.
SpaceX Falcon 9 to Bring More Than 50 Starlink Satellites
The first stage of a Falcon 9 rocket will be making its 12th career voyage to space to deliver 53 additional Starlink broadband satellites through Earth's atmosphere, which is unprecedented in the history of orbital spaceflight.
According to CNET, SpaceX presently has two boosters in its fleet, each of which has flown 11 times.
The Falcon 9 rocket to launch on Friday night has already completed eight earlier Starlink flights, lofted a SiriusXM satellite, launched a Canadian Radarsat mission, and powered NASA's Demo-2 mission to the International Space Station.
The launcher will land on the Just Read The Instructions drone ship after putting the upper stage and satellites into orbit.
About SpaceX Starlink
According to astronomer and satellite tracker Jonathan McDowell (via Space.com), SpaceX has launched 2,282 Starlink satellites so far, with 2,033 of them fully active.
ALSO READ: Experts Reveal That 3% Of SpaceX's Starlink Satellites Have Failed In Orbit So Far
The broadband constellation serves consumers all around the world, including Ukraine, where invading Russian soldiers crippled the country's communications infrastructure. Starlink terminals and other gear have been supplied to the war-torn country by SpaceX. The company has received praises from appreciative Ukrainian government officials.
The Starlink network is still expanding, as seen by tonight's debut. SpaceX wants it to grow even more: the business has authority to launch 12,000 Starlink satellites, and it has asked an international regulator for permission to launch 30,000 more.
Axiom Space, SpaceX Moves Crewed Flights
Meanwhile, Fox35 said Axiom Space and SpaceX are rescheduling two scheduled crewed flights.
The Axiom Mission 1 (Ax-1) will fly to and from the International Space Station on SpaceX's Dragon Endeavour spacecraft, with a launch no sooner than Sunday, April 3, and splashdown off the coast of Florida after 10 days in orbit. The Ax-1 mission will launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center's Launch Complex 39A.
NASA and SpaceX are revising the intended launch date for the agency's SpaceX Crew-4 mission to the space station due to the Ax-1 launch date modification. The new schedule calls for a launch no sooner than Tuesday, April 19, pending the completion of program evaluations, which are scheduled to be completed early next week.
On a new Dragon spacecraft and flight-proven Falcon 9 rocket, Crew-4 will transport an international crew of four astronauts to the orbital complex for a research expedition mission. Commander Kjell Lindgren, Pilot Robert Hines, and Mission Specialists Samantha Cristoforetti and Jessica Watkins make up the crew. Cristoforetti is a European Space Agency astronaut, whereas Hines, Watkins, and Lindgren are NASA astronauts.
RELATED ARTICLE: SpaceX to Reuse Dragon Spacecraft Fleet After Rocket Booster from NASA Crew-1 'Leaned'
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