A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying 23 Starlink satellites is launched from Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida on April 18. It will launch a new round on Monday. Photo by Joe Marino/UPI | License Photo
SpaceX will launch its next round of 23 Starlink Internet satellites into low-Earth orbit on Monday from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station Launch Complex 40.
The launch is expected to take off at about 11:29 a.m., marking the 10th flight for the first stage booster being used. That stage is expected to return to Earth and land on the drone ship A Shortfall of Gravitas in the Atlantic Ocean about eight minutes after launch. Advertisement
The mission, expected to be SpaceX’s 55th Falcon 9 launch of the year, will increase the company average launch rate at one every 2.7 days.
Bill Gerstenmaier, vice president of build and flight reliability at SpaceX, told Congress last October that the company has a goal of 144 launches in 2024. The current place it at 135, according to SpaceFlightNow.com.
However, the flight on Monday would be SpaceX’s 12 flight this time, tying it with the most March and April monthly highs, indicating the company’s increased effort in reaching their 2024 goal. Advertisement
Kiko Dontchev, SpaceX’s vice president of launch, said on X last week that he believes the company still has a shot at 14 launches this month.
