Vandenberg AFB warns public to expect sound booms from SpaceX launch

–Vandenberg Airforce Base and SpaceX are scheduled to launch the Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite this Saturday at 9:17 am from the base. The Sentinel-6 is the first of two identical satellites to move into Earth orbit five years apart to continue sea level observations for at least the next decade.

Upon re-entry of the vehicle, spectators and local residents of San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura counties can expect to hear several booms of sound as the vehicle crosses the sound barrier.

A sonic boom is a sound associated with shock waves from an aircraft or launcher traveling faster than the speed of sound. Sonic booms generate a sound similar to an explosion or thunderclap. The sound boom experienced will depend on weather conditions and other factors.

The Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite will orbit a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 4E in Vandenberg. The launch is being handled by the NASA Launch Services Program, based at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the agency’s contribution to the mission.

Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich, the latest in a series of spacecraft designed to monitor Earth’s oceans. It is tasked with extending the nearly 30-year record of global sea surface height measurements, reports NASA. Instruments aboard the satellites will also provide atmospheric data that will improve weather forecasts, climate models and hurricane tracking, according to NASA.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the normal public viewing area near Vandenberg will not be open to the public.

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