A Falcon 9 launch can typically carry about 60 Starlink satellites.
SpaceXSpaceX aims to launch its 16th batch of its Starlink broadband satellites on Monday, a day after Elon Musk's rocket company successfully sent a new NASA and European Space Agency satellite to orbit.
Boosting a new group of its orbiting routers has become a matter of routine for SpaceX as it works to build up a mega-constellation with thousands of the individual satellites in a low-Earth orbit. But this mission stands to put a new feather in Musk's cap.
The first stage of the Falcon 9 rocket is set to make its seventh flight, which would be a record for rocket recycling for the company. The booster previously flew on four Starlink missions and a pair of larger telecom satellite launches.
SpaceX will likely attempt to land the booster on a droneship in the Atlantic shortly after launch and may also try to catch the two halves of the nose cone or fairing with another pair of ships.
This all happens after SpaceX pulled off another big launch on the other side of the country. On Saturday morning, another Falcon 9 blasted off from Vandenburg Air Force Base in California carrying the new NASA/European Space Agency Sentinel 6 Michael Freilich satellite designed to monitor global sea level rise and improve weather forecasting.
Standing down from today’s launch of Starlink. Rocket and payload are healthy; teams will use additional time to complete data reviews and are now working toward backup opportunity on Monday, November 23 at 9:34 p.m. but keeping an eye on recovery weather
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) November 23, 2020
Originally, the Starlink launch was set to take place just ten hours after liftoff of the Sentinel 6 mission, but was pushed back a couple of days.
The launch is set for 9:34 p.m. ET/6:34 P.T. on Monday. You can watch the whole thing right here:
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