Breaking

Jun 01, 2020 1 min, 19 secs

The weather forecast lists a 61-minute launch window for the Starlink mission opening at 8:55 p.m.

SpaceX has launched 420 Starlink satellites on seven dedicated Falcon 9 launches since May 2019, with each rocket carrying 60 Starlink spacecraft.

SpaceX delayed the launch after Tropical Storm Arthur brought high winds and rough seas to the downrange recovery area northeast of Cape Canaveral in the Atlantic Ocean, where SpaceX’s drone ship needs to be positioned for landing of the Falcon 9 rocket’s first stage booster.

Once Tropical Storm Arthur forced the initial launch delay, SpaceX decided to keep the Starlink mission on the ground until after the company launched the Crew Dragon spacecraft from nearby pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

The Crew Dragon launched Saturday with NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken, the first crewed mission to launch into orbit from U.S.

SpaceX’s drone ship “Of Course I Still Love You” was deployed in the Atlantic Ocean for the landing of the Falcon 9’s first stage booster after the Starlink launch.

The drone ship was later used for the landing of the Falcon 9 first stage after the Crew Dragon launch.

Another drone ship in SpaceX’s fleet — named “Just the Read Instructions” — has completed upgrades and departed Port Canaveral, Florida, to support the booster landing for the next Starlink launch.

The Falcon 9 rocket for the next Starlink mission completed a hold-down test-firing of its Merlin main engines May 13 on pad 40.

The first stage assigned to this week’s launch is a veteran of four previous flights, landing on a SpaceX drone ship after each mission.

RECENT NEWS

SUBSCRIBE

Get monthly updates and free resources.

CONNECT WITH US

© Copyright 2024 365NEWSX - All RIGHTS RESERVED