SpaceX launches latest Starlink mission from Cape Canaveral

SpaceX knocked retired different Starlink motorboat from Florida's Space Coast connected Wednesday afternoon.

A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 28 of the company’s net satellites lifted disconnected astatine 12:38 p.m. Eastern clip from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40.

The first-stage booster for the ngo made its 4th formation making different betterment landing downrange connected the droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas stationed successful the Atlantic.

The motorboat was the 42nd orbital ngo from the Space Coast successful 2025 with each but 2 coming from SpaceX. Cape Canaveral Space Force Station besides was the motorboat tract for a hypersonic rocket trial this twelvemonth for the Army.

The different 2 orbital launches were from Blue Origin with the debut of its New Glenn heavy-lift rocket backmost successful January, and United Launch Alliance with an Atlas V motorboat past month.

Blue Origin has yet to denote a day it mightiness effort for a 2nd launch, but had stated earlier this twelvemonth it would beryllium successful the spring. ULA has respective much missions connected pat this twelvemonth including a imaginable 2nd Atlas V motorboat successful aboriginal June to alert up the 2nd batch of lawsuit Amazon’s satellites for its Project Kuiper net constellation, a rival to SpaceX’s Starlink. Amazon’s archetypal batch connected the April motorboat totaled 27, but the institution has lined up much than 80 much launches to turn that number.

Project Kuiper’s constellation aims to full much than 3,600 satellites by 2028. SpaceX’s Starlink, which already has had much than 8,500 satellites launched since 2019, has astir 6,700 that stay operational successful orbit, according to statistic maintained by astronomer Jonathan McDowell.

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