SpaceX launch tonight: Everything to know about the Starlink launch from Cape Canaveral

It's launch day — for the record-breaking 58th orbital launch from Cape Canaveral this year!

Navigational warnings indicate SpaceX is targeting 10:17 p.m. EDT to launch a Falcon 9 rocket on another Starlink mission from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

The Space Force 45th Weather Squadron has forecast a 95% chance of "go" weather for launch.

Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and Kennedy Space Center hosted 31 orbital rocket launches, a new annual record, in 2021. Then launches leaped to 57 last year — a new record reflecting an 84% increase.

On Tuesday, a successful SpaceX Starlink mission marks the Cape's 57th orbital launch thus far in 2023, tying last year's record.

No local sonic booms should occur with the upcoming Starlink 6-24 mission, which will deploy another batch of the company's internet-beaming satellites into low-Earth orbit.

After liftoff from Launch Complex 40, the Falcon 9 will track to the southeast before targeting a first-stage booster landing aboard a drone ship out on the Atlantic Ocean near the Bahamas.

Follow FLORIDA TODAY's Space Team live launch coverage on this page beginning 90 minutes before liftoff.

The first target time to launch the Starlink 6-24 mission is 10:17 p.m. EDT Saturday.

Five backup opportunities are available if needed, extending from 11:07 p.m. to 2:15 a.m. EDT Sunday.

The Space Force's 45th Weather Squadron pegs the odds of "go" conditions at 95% for the possible launch.

"Overall launch weather conditions look very favorable for a launch attempt this weekend. (Friday), a deep mid-level trough is digging into the Southeast and an associated weak cold front will move through the area tonight into (Saturday) morning," the launch forecast said.

"(Saturday), another shot of dry air will filter in as low-level winds shift to the west/northwest behind the front, and high pressure builds in the area," the forecast said.

Regardless, the 45th Weather Squadron's forecast cites a low to moderate risk of upper-level wind shear as a risk criteria.

Cape Canaveral Space Force Station's Launch Complex 40 will host.
The payload is SpaceX's next batch of 22 Starlink internet-beaming satellites.
The 230-foot Falcon 9 rocket will follow a southeasterly trajectory, threading between Florida and the Bahamas.
The liftoff will mark the Space Coast's record-shattering 58th launch this year.
No local sonic booms will occur with this mission.
The 130-foot first stage booster will target a drone ship landing about 8½ minutes after liftoff.

Quelle: Florida Today

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Update: 22.10.2023

Start von SpaceX’s 107th Starlink mission and 108th Starlink