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CAP CANAVERAL, Fla .– SpaceX is preparing to launch its next batch of Starlink Satellites in orbit for the company’s ever-growing high-speed internet mega-stellation and you can watch it live online.
On Tuesday, August 18, the California-based rocket company will launch 58 Starlink satellites and three planet Earth imaging satellites for Planet on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Base in Florida. Take-off is scheduled for no earlier than 10:31 a.m. EDT (1431 GMT).
You can watch SpaceX’s Starlink launch live here and on the Space.com homepage, courtesy of SpaceX, from about 15 minutes before liftoff. You will also be able to watch the launch directly from SpaceX here.
Related: SpaceX’s Starlink satellite mega-constellation launches in photos
SpaceX has had a banner summer so far. The company became the first private company to launch humans onto the International Space Station when its Demo-2 mission took off May 30, and brought his astronaut crew safely back to Earth just over two months later on August 2.
The company has also successfully demonstrated that his latest Starship prototype could fly. On August 4, the giant silver tube took to the skies, rising 150 meters above the Texas landscape. SpaceX also grabbed a coveted national security launch contract, beating rivals Blue Origin and Northrop Grumman. Now the company is gearing up for its 13th launch of the year, putting another set of its internet broadcast satellites into orbit.
As part of SpaceX’s recently established carpooling program, this latest batch of Starlink satellites will be joined by other passengers – three small SkySat satellites by Californian imaging company Planet. This is SpaceX’s second joint mission with Planet, they had already launched another series of three small satellites in June.
Related: SpaceX launches 60 Starlink satellites, lands rocket in dazzling nighttime liftoff
The Falcon 9 booster supporting this mission had previously launched Telstar 18 VANTAGE, Iridium-8 and three separate Starlink flights pic.twitter.com/Dwc7EXFiiLAug 17, 2020
This upcoming launch marks the 91st flight of SpaceX’s rocket, the Falcon 9. The launch will feature a veteran Falcon 9 rocket with a record five flights to its name. The booster, designated B1049, had previously launched three separate Starlink flights, as well as the Telstar 18 VANTAGE and Iridium-8 missions.
Flying previously piloted boosters has become common for SpaceX, but this launch marks the first time its fleet of flight-tested boosters will attempt to launch and land for the sixth time.
To date, the company has launched three boosters five times (each), all but one landing successfully. (The only landing that failed was upset by residual cleaning fluid which caused an engine failure during flight. He subsequently missed his landing on the drone.)
SpaceX is both the launch supplier and the customer for its Starlink missions, and as such, has maintained a rapid launch pace this summer, relying heavily on its fleet of flight-proven thrusters. In fact, the Falcon 9 hung on the title of the most stolen American rocket this year of its competitor, the Atlas V.
To date, SpaceX has managed to land its first stage boosters 57 times. Now that the company has two fully operational drones – “Sure, I still love you” and “Just read the instructions” – in Florida, it is able to launch (and land) more rockets. The original East Coast ship, Of course I still love you, is already in the salvage area waiting for its turn to catch the B1049 when it returns to Earth on Tuesday morning.
Related: Why SpaceX’s Starlink satellites caught astronomers off guard
Targeting Tuesday, August 18 at 10:31 a.m. EDT for Falcon 9 launch from Space Launch Complex 40 in Florida of 58 Starlink satellites and 3 spacecraft @planetlabsAug 17, 2020
With its Starlink mega-constellation, SpaceX hopes to provide high-speed Internet access to users around the world. Using a small terminal (no bigger than a laptop), ground users could connect to the ever-growing constellation.
To this end, the founder and CEO of SpaceX, Elon musk said it would take a minimum of 500 to 800 Starlink satellites in the sky for coverage to deploy. So far, his aerospace company has launched more than 600.
Tuesday morning weather looks promising, with only a 20% chance time violation, according to forecasters from the 45th Meteorological Squadron. Temperatures in the area are believed to be around 83 degrees Fahrenheit (28 degrees Celsius) with a few scattered clouds.
Related: See the evolution of SpaceX rockets in pictures
In addition to a planned booster recovery, SpaceX has already deployed its two fairing capture ships: GO Ms. Tree and GO Ms. Chief that it aims to use to hook up the payload fairings as they fall back to Earth. To date, Ms Tree has hung four fairings, one of which was part of the very first dual take.
The fairing halves come equipped with software that directs them to the recovery area, as well as a parachute system that allows them to land smoothly in the ocean or the taut net of the twin recovery vessels of the ‘business. Each fairing costs around $ 6 million, so SpaceX cuts launch costs by recovering and reusing this material.
Follow Amy Thompson on Twitter @astrogingersnap. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom or Facebook.
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