Photo: SpaceX (via Elon Musk)
As SpaceX expands its Starlink satellite constellation, the company is already gearing up to move to its reusable Starship spacecraft to prepare for future missions.
SpaceX launched 53 more Starlink satellites into orbit on Friday, as detailed on the company’s website, with the launch taking place at 5:42 a.m. ET from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
While SpaceX is preparing to switch all future launches to the Starship reusable spacecraft, the current and past launches have taken place using the Falcon 9 rocket booster.
The launch was a success, with the satellites currently entering final orbit.
This launch marked the 12th flight for the Falcon 9 first-stage rocket booster, and the seventh flight dedicated to launching Starlink missions.
The booster previously also launched missions such as the Crew Demo-2, ANASIS-II, CRS-21, Transporter-1 and Transporter-3.
The switch to Starship has been delayed multiple times by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), this time until at least May 31.
Starlink has around 150,000 daily users in Ukraine, after SpaceX donated a handful of terminals and hardware to the country amidst the ongoing Russian invasion.
The company has also signed a deal with Hawaiian Airlines to provide free in-flight Wi-Fi using Starlink satellite internet service.
You can watch SpaceX launch the Starlink satellites into orbit in the replay below:
