60 Internet satellites on the heaviest mission

SpaceX sent a packed rocket of 60 satellites into space Thursday morning, as part of a first key mission to set up its own high-speed Internet network.

The launch was "the heaviest payload of a Falcon 9 [rocket] SpaceX president Elon Musk told reporters before the mission. In total, the rocket has raised more than 37,000 pounds of mass, he said.

Called "Starlink", these satellites represent the company's ambitious plan to create a network of interconnected satellites to transmit broadband Internet connections around the world. This is how Musk thinks that SpaceX will be able to generate enough revenue to reach its even more ambitious goals: send astronauts to Mars and establish the first human settlement on the red planet.

Starlink itself "is one of the most challenging engineering projects I have ever seen come true," said Musk.

The Falcon 9 rocket was launched from the company's base in Cape Canaveral, Florida. About an hour after takeoff, SpaceX deployed the 60 Starlink satellites in a "very low Earth orbit" 440 km above the surface.

The Starlink complete network would consist of 11,943 satellites flying close to the planet, closer than the International Space Station.

Musk said that SpaceX would need about 720 satellites in orbit to get "moderate" coverage around the world. Starlink will likely require billions of dollars to develop fully, but Musk said SpaceX has the funds to start operations.

"At this point, it seems we have enough capital to move to an operational level," said Musk.

SpaceX is one of many companies, including Amazon's Jeff Bezos, that builds these "constellations" of interconnected Internet satellites.