Another 23 Starlink Satellites Launched into Orbit by SpaceX
In another successful mission for SpaceX, a Falcon 9 rocket was launched late Saturday night from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, delivering 23 Starlink satellites into orbit. The launch, which occurred at 11:00 pm ET, marked the continuation of the build-out of the Group 6 Starlink shell, with this mission being designated Group 6-31.
The 23 V2 mini Starlinks were inserted into a 43-degree orbital inclination, the same as the previous group 6 missions. The satellites separated from the 2nd stage just over an hour after the launch. This launch marked the 89th orbital mission of the year for SpaceX as they work towards reaching 100 launches in a year.
The Falcon 9 tasked with this mission was Booster 1078, which flew for its 6th time. B1078 made a successful landing on the droneship “A Shortfall of Gravitas” about eight and a half minutes after launch.
Looking ahead at the rest of the month, there are five more launches for SpaceX scheduled out for December 14th, including a Falcon Heavy from LC-39A. After December 14th, there could be a chance of at least eight more launches if schedules can hold.
SpaceX is maintaining a rapid launch cadence, with a majority of launches coming from SLC-40 and an average pad turnaround time between launches of just under 5 days. This demonstrates the company’s commitment to maximizing launch capabilities.
Following this weekend’s launch, two more Starlink launches are scheduled, one from Florida no earlier than December 6th and one from California no earlier than December 8th, followed by the Falcon Heavy launch currently scheduled for December 10th after a slight delay.
As always, SpaceX will attempt to recover the payload fairings for use on another mission. If you have any questions or comments, you can reach out to the author via email or on Twitter.