1 of 2 | A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches the fourth set of O3b mPOWER communications satellites for Luxembourg-based SES from Launch Complex 39 at 5:26 PM from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida on December 17. Photo by Joe Marino/UPI | License Photo
Dec. 29 (UPI) — SpaceX has successfully accomplished consecutive missions of two Falcon 9 rockets during the weekend, placing 22 Starlink satellites and Astranis’s One to Many Mission into orbit, marking the 132nd and 133rd missions of the year.
“We’re now aiming for 134 launches — two short of our previous target — to conclude 2024 on a high note,” Kiko Dontchev, SpaceX’s vice president of launch remarked on social media. “Here’s to an excellent final few days of 2024 and an even more remarkable 2025!”
The initial of the two missions departed from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 5:48 p.m. PST and delivered the communications satellites into low-Earth orbit approximately 65 minutes later.
The first stage booster fuel module re-entered Earth, landing on the droneship “Of Course I Still Love You” in the Pacific Ocean about eight minutes post liftoff, a procedure that has almost become routine.
This was the 16th mission for this specific booster, with twelve of its flights dedicated to launching Starlink satellites into orbit, contributing to the SpaceX broadband internet constellation. This marked SpaceX’s 88th Starlink mission this year, although one mission encountered failure due to an upper-stage oxygen leak.
The Starlink satellite constellation comprises nearly 6,700 operational modules, as per satellite tracker and astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell.
“In the end, one number holds the utmost significance. ZERO failures. Our focus is – and will remain – on safety and dependability above everything else,” continued Dontchev.
The second launch, executed at 12 a.m. EST Sunday, deployed a small array of 4 “MicroGEO” satellites into orbit for the company Astranis from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. SpaceX succeeded on its second attempt after the initial launch was canceled mere seconds before the planned launch a week prior. SpaceX indicated that it modified some engine components to ensure the success of the second attempt.
The Astranis mission constituted the second of three scheduled SpaceX launches this weekend.
The MicroGEO satellites launched on Sunday are designed to deliver various satellite communication services, including in-flight connectivity for airplanes, vessels, or other methods of transport. Another satellite will focus on broadband provision in the Philippines.
“These are the most sophisticated satellites we’ve developed, featuring numerous upgrades that will enhance capacity and affordability,” stated Astranis CEO John Gedmark in a pre-launch announcement.
SpaceX intends to launch an additional 21 Starlink satellites from Florida on Monday.