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SpaceX is preparing for another launch of 23 satellites for its Starlink internet service from Cape Canaveral. This will be the second Falcon 9 launch of the day for SpaceX. The liftoff is scheduled for 8:17 p.m. EDT and will take place from pad 40. Earlier in the day, SpaceX launched 22 Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base, bringing the total number of Starlink satellites in orbit to 4,989, according to Jonathan McDowell’s compiled statistics. If all goes well, SpaceX will have over 5,000 satellites in orbit by the end of the day.

A forecast by the 45th Weather Squadron at Cape Canaveral predicts an 85% chance of favorable launch conditions, with the main concerns being liftoff wind limits and the possibility of lightning-triggering cumulus clouds. There is also a low to moderate risk of poor weather in the booster recovery area near the Bahamas. However, SpaceX has five backup launch opportunities available throughout the night, the last of which is scheduled for 10:47 p.m. EDT.

Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) will serve as the launch site, and the Falcon 9 will follow a south-easterly trajectory, aiming for an orbit inclined at 43 degrees to the equator. The first-stage booster, on its eighth flight, is expected to land on the drone ship ‘Of Course I Still Love you’ approximately eight and a half minutes after liftoff. The booster, registered as B1077, has previously flown several missions, including Crew 5 to the International Space Station and various other satellite and Starlink deliveries.

The deployment of the 23 Starlink satellites into an orbit measuring 182×177 miles is scheduled to occur approximately 1 hour, 5 minutes, and 38 seconds after launch. This launch will mark SpaceX’s 90th orbital mission in the last 365 days, which equates to an average of one launch every four days. The company aims to increase the pace, striving for 100 launches in 2023 and a total of 144 in 2024.

Sources:

• Jonathan McDowell’s statistics

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