SpaceX launched one other batch of its Starlink broadband satellites to orbit early this morning (Oct. 7).
A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 28 Starlink satellites lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida right now at 2:46 a.m. EDT (0646 GMT).
The rocket’s first stage got here again to Earth as deliberate about 8.5 minutes later, touching down within the Atlantic Ocean on the SpaceX drone ship “A Shortfall of Gravitas.”
It was the eighth launch and touchdown for this explicit booster, which is designated B1090.
The Falcon 9’s higher stage continued hauling the Starlink satellites towards low Earth orbit (LEO), where they’re scheduled to be deployed about 64 minutes after liftoff.
Previous Booster 1090 missions
Today’s launch was the 126th flight of the year for the workhorse Falcon 9, and the 130th liftoff overall for SpaceX.
The other four were suborbital test flights of the Starship megarocket, which the company is developing to help humanity settle Mars. Starship’s fifth test launch of the year is coming up soon — it’s scheduled for Oct. 13.