The launch of new Starlink satellites has been postponed

SpaceX has delayed the launch of another group of its Starlink Internet satellites.

According to Space, a Falcon 9 rocket carrying 22 Starlink satellites was scheduled to lift off from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Thursday, March 28, but SpaceX aborted the attempt before refueling the rocket. . SpaceX is now targeting March 29 at 10:30 PM ET.

If all goes according to plan, the Falcon 9's first stage will return to Earth for a vertical descent about 8.5 minutes after launch to land on SpaceX's floating unmanned landing pad in the Pacific Ocean.

According to the SpaceX mission description, this will be the 15th launch and landing for this special booster.

The Falcon 9 upper stage will continue to carry 22 Starlink satellites into low-Earth orbit to deploy them about 62 minutes after launch.

This planned relaunch is the 30th Falcon 9 flight in 2024 and the 20th dedicated to building the Starlink satellite network. According to astrophysicist and satellite tracker Jonathan McDowell, SpaceX has launched 6,677 Starlink satellites to date, of which 5,610 are currently operational.

The development of this staggering statistic will continue in the future. SpaceX has a license to deploy 12,000 Starlink satellites in low-Earth orbit and has applied for 30,000 more.

Source: ISNA