The first of two Falcon 9 missions SpaceX is planning for Sunday will carry into orbit the largest batch of second-generation Starlink satellites to be launched from the West Coast. It will be the 50th Starlink launch of the year.
The Falcon 9 is scheduled to liftoff from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 2 a.m. PDT (5 a.m. EDT / 0900 UTC) with 22 satellites aboard. There are back up launch times available at 2:50:40 a.m. PDT (5:50:40 p.m. EDT / 09:50:40 UTC) and 3:08:40 a.m. PDT (6:08:40 a.m. EDT / 10:08:40 UTC).
Spaceflight Now will provide launch coverage in our 24-7 Launch Pad Live stream.
The California launch will be followed on Sunday by another Starlink delivery mission carrying 23 satellites, which will launch from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 7:45 p.m. EDT (2345 UTC).
The Starlink 7-6 mission will be the first time a Falcon 9 has carried 22 of the so-called V2 Mini satellites from the West Coast. Previously, missions from there had been limited to 15 or 21 Starlinks, depending on the orbit. On the East Coast, a Falcon 9 launched 23 V2 Minis a week ago on Oct. 21, one more than the previous maximum load for a mission from the Cape.
SpaceX has not explained how it is achieving this extra delivery capacity. It’s possibly due an improvement in the rated performance of the Falcon 9 or perhaps a manufacturing change that has reduced the satellites’ total weight.
The Falcon 9 first-stage booster, tail number B1075, is making its seventh flight. It entered service in January of this year carrying 51 older generation Starlinks into orbit. It went on to launch the Tranche 0 Flight 1 mission for the U.S. military’s Space Development Agency and then made four more Starlink delivery flights. It last flew on Sept. 25, making for a 34-day turnaround.
After separating from the Falcon 9 second stage, B1075 will continue downrange for a landing on the droneship Of Course I Just Love You, which will be stationed in the Pacific off shore of Baja California.
The 22 Starlink satellites will be released from the second-stage just over an hour into flight. A successful deployment will bring the total number of Starlink satellites in orbit to 4,989, according to statistics compiled by Jonathan McDowell.
If this launch goes on time, SpaceX will have accomplished 25 orbital missions from Vandenberg in the last 365 days, an average of one launch every 14.6 days. Including launches from Cape Canaveral, it will be the 89th orbital mission for SpaceX in the last 365 days, a launch every 4.1 days on average.
Dr. Sarah Adams is a scientist and science communicator who makes complex topics accessible to all. Her articles explore breakthroughs in various scientific disciplines, from space exploration to cutting-edge research.
