SpaceX launches 53 Starlink satellites, lands Falcon 9 rocket at sea after record-tying 12th flight
A SpaceX launched more than four dozen new Starlink internet satellites into orbit before dawn on Friday in a record-tying 12th flight for its Falcon 9 rocket.
The two-stage Falcon 9 rocket topped with 53 of SpaceX's Starlink internet satellites lit up the predawn sky above Florida as it lifted off from Pad 39A of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida Friday at 5:42 a.m. EDT (0942 GMT). The mission marked the 12th launch for this Falcon 9's first stage, tying a company reuse record. SpaceX has flown three different Falcon 9 boosters 12 times so far. And Friday's launch vehicle will likely fly again as SpaceX successfully landed the booster on its droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas, which was stationed off the Florida coast in the Atlantic Ocean. It was the 111th successful landing for SpaceX.
Starlink is SpaceX's huge and ever-growing constellation of broadband satellites. The company has launched more than 2,400 Starlink spacecraft to date, many of them this year; 10 of SpaceX's 18 launches in 2022 have been dedicated Starlink missions.
Friday's launch marked the 45th Starlink mission since launches began in 2019, SpaceX sales manager Ian McCullough said during live launch commentary. And there will be many more such flights to come. The next-generation version of Starlink - which is already providing internet service to a variety of locales around the globe - could consist of up to 30,000 satellites, according to paperwork filed by SpaceX.
As the Falcon 9 launch tally shows, 2022 has already been a big year for SpaceX. Last month was particularly busy; the company launched six missions in April, including Ax-1 mission, the first-ever all-private crewed flight to the International Space Station, and Crew-4, SpaceX's latest astronaut flight to the orbiting lab for NASA.
"With reuse enabling our increased launch cadence, we've been able to support one launch per week on average,' McCullough said during Friday's launch. "In April alone, we had a total of six launches, including two human spaceflight launches with Ax-1 and Crew-4."
"And we're seeing no signs of slowing down soon," McCullough said. "In the past 12 months, we've added more than 40 commercial missions to our manifest that will launch in the next couple of years."
SpaceX’s Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket (collectively referred to as Starship) represent a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars and beyond. Starship will be the world’s most powerful launch vehicle ever developed, with the ability to carry in excess of 100 metric tonnes to Earth orbit.
It is called Starship, and for SpaceX, Mr. Musk’s private space company, it is the future. Its success or failure may determine whether the company achieves his dreams.
But many obstacles remain to be overcome. Here are answers to common questions about Starship and what must occur before it gets to space, let alone the moon.
Starship is a fully reusable super heavy-lift launch vehicle that is currently being developed and manufactured by American aerospace manufacturer SpaceX. The rocket will consist of the Super Heavy booster stage and the Starship spacecraft on top, and will be mainly constructed out of stainless steel. In total, Starship is the tallest, heaviest, and most powerful rocket ever built. Both stages combust liquid oxygen and methane with variants of Raptor engines. The booster may land on mechanical arms on the launch tower, while the spacecraft can move its flaps to control its descent. The planned tanker variant may fuel other Starships in orbit, before they send 100 t (220,000 lb) to low Earth orbit, the Moon, and Mars.
Such a rocket was first outlined by SpaceX as early as 2005, with its design and name changed frequently. In July 2019, Starhopper, a prototype vehicle with extended fins, was able to successfully hover. In May 2021, Starship SN15 successfully flew to 10 km (6 mi) and landed, after four failed attempts by previous prototypes. As of May 2022, the first Starship rocket is planned to launch in 2022 pending regulatory approval.[1] The rocket's development is iterative and incremental with testing and manufacturing of prototypes. However, critics have noted its delayed milestones.
SpaceX plans to construct launch sites at Starbase, Kennedy Space Center, and two offshore launch platforms. In the near-term, Starship may deploy satellites and space probes, serving space tourists, and exploring the Moon via the Artemis program. Further into the future, the rocket may travel between locations on Earth and aid SpaceX's ambition of colonizing Mars. Such operation level is only possible due to reduced launch cost.
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