If you thought the manned SpaceX launch of a Falcon 9 rocket that took two astronauts to the International Space Station was cool … that wasn’t the end of it.
Weather permitting, SpaceX will hold the eighth launch of Starlink satellites tonight at 9:25 p.m. from Launch pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
Weather was 70 percent favorable for launch as of late morning. A backup opportunity is available on Thursday at 9:03 p.m.
SpaceX will land Falcon 9’s first stage on the “Just Read the Instructions” drone ship, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean. Approximately 45 minutes after liftoff, SpaceX’s fairing recovery vessels, “Ms. Tree” and “Ms. Chief,” will attempt to recover the two fairing halves from the ocean. The Starlink satellites will deploy in an elliptical orbit approximately 15 minutes after liftoff. Those satellites are part of SpaceX’s mission to provide high-speed internet access around the word.
