SpaceX launched its Falcon 9 rocket early Wednesday evening, delivering 23 Starlink satellites into low-Earth orbit under clear, sunny skies in Florida.
“Merlin engine ignition and liftoff of Falcon 9!” SpaceX wrote in a post on X.
“Five, four, three, two, one, zero, mission liftoff,” as video of the launch shows the 230-foot rocket take off at 5:26 p.m. EDT from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
More than eight minutes later, SpaceX announced that the rocket’s first stage booster had landed vertically on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean.
“Nominal orbital insertion and first stage landing on the Just Read the Instructions droneship confirmed,” Space X said on its website.
The 23 Starlink satellites were deployed around 65 minutes after liftoff.
“Payload deployment confirmed, adding 23 Starlink satellites to the global constellation,” SpaceX announced in an update.
The 23 Starlink satellites will join the mega constellation’s existing more than 5,700 active satellites.
Wednesday’s flight was SpaceX’s 39th orbital mission of the year and the 26th dedicated to the Starlink network.
It also marked the twelfth launch and landing of the mission’s first-stage rocket. This gets it within eight of the company’s 20-mission reuse record.SpaceX successfully launched Falcon 9 Rocket with 23 StarLink Satellites from Florida
While Wednesday’s flight was faultless, SpaceX’s live stream broadcast cut out roughly three minutes after liftoff. No reason for the disruption was provided.