SpaceX kicked off the weekend with another rapid-fire launch doubleheader, sending two batches of Starlink satellites to orbit less than four hours apart from Florida’s Space Coast. The overnight missions mark the company’s 145th and 146th Falcon 9 flights of 2025, as SpaceX continues its record-smashing launch cadence.
The first launch took place Friday night at 7:08 p.m. PT/10:08 p.m. ET, when a Falcon 9 lifted off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center carrying 29 Starlink satellites. According to SpaceX, this mission used a first-stage booster flying for the eighth time, with previous flights including NROL-69, CRS-32, GPS III-7, USSF-36, and four Starlink launches. After stage separation, the booster landed on the Just Read the Instructions droneship in the Atlantic Ocean, and the satellites were deployed into low Earth orbit roughly 56 minutes later. Watch the full launch below:
Just 3 hours and 36 minutes later, at 10:44 p.m. PT on Friday/1:44 a.m. ET on Saturday, another Falcon 9 blasted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station with another 29 Starlink satellites. This booster was flying for the 24th time, having supported Crew-6, SES O3b mPOWER-B, USSF-124, BlueBird 1-5, Nusantara Lima (PSN N5), and an impressive 19 Starlink missions. It also touched down on Just Read the Instructions before the upper stage continued toward orbit. You can check out the full Starlink launch in the video below:
The back-to-back flights follow just weeks after SpaceX set a new annual launch record with its 139th mission of the year, including 134 Falcon 9 launches and five suborbital Starship test flights.
More than 100 Falcon 9 flights this year have been dedicated to expanding the Starlink constellation, which now includes over 8,900 active satellites in orbit. The rapid pace has enabled the company to boost median peak-hour speeds across its network by more than 50% so far this year. Starlink also recently launched its cheapest internet plan yet in the U.S., starting at just $40 per month for unlimited data and speeds up to 100 Mbps.
With more launches on the schedule and the Starlink constellation continuing to grow, SpaceX shows no signs of slowing its already unprecedented launch rhythm.
