SpaceX Launches First 60 Starlink Satellites to Begin Global Internet Network
SpaceX successfully deploys the initial batch of 60 Starlink broadband satellites into orbit from Cape Canaveral. This launch marks the first dedicated mission for the multibillion-dollar project aimed at providing global high-speed internet.
SpaceX successfully delivers the first 60 Starlink broadband satellites into orbit after a nighttime launch from Cape Canaveral. These flat-panel satellites, built entirely by an in-house SpaceX team, represent the initial building blocks of a massive constellation designed to provide high-speed internet to consumers worldwide. Hundreds more satellites join these first 60 craft over the next year to establish the network's preliminary coverage.
The mission experiences a few delays before finally taking off, with upper-level winds and necessary satellite software updates pushing the launch back by a week. A 229-foot-tall Falcon 9 rocket carries the Starlink payload into space, generating 1.7 million pounds of thrust from its nine Merlin main engines. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk praises the difficult engineering feat while cautioning that there remains a possibility that some or all of the experimental satellites might not work.
The Falcon 9's first stage separates from the second stage two-and-a-half minutes into flight and executes a precise propulsive landing on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. This successful recovery marks the third flight for this particular rocket booster. Additionally, SpaceX recovery teams retrieve the rocket's two-piece nose cone from the sea using parachutes, allowing the company to reuse these expensive components in future missions.