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SpaceX is gearing as much as launch 23 more satellites for its Starlink web service from Cape Canaveral on Sunday, its second Falcon 9 launch of the day. Liftoff from pad 40 is scheduled for 7:45 p.m. EDT (2345 UTC).
Earlier Sunday, a Falcon 9 lofted 22 Starlinks from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. That launch brought the variety of Starlink satellites currently in orbit to 4,989, in response to statistics compiled by Jonathan McDowell. If all goes in response to plan, SpaceX could have greater than 5,000 Starlink satellites in orbit by the tip of the day.
A forecast issued by the forty fifth Weather Squadron at Cape Canaveral on Saturday gave the Falcon 9 an 85-percent probability of favorable conditions for launch. The predominant concerns are violations of liftoff wind limits and rules related to lightning-triggering cumulus clouds. There was a low to moderate risk of poor weather within the booster recovery area near the Bahamas.
SpaceX has seven back up launch opportunities on Sunday night if needed, the last of which is at 10:47 p.m. EDT (0247 UTC).
Spaceflight Now will bring you reside coverage from the Cape, starting about an hour before launch.
After lifting off from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, the Falcon 9 will pitch and roll onto a south-easterly trajectory because it targets an orbit inclined at 43 degrees to the equator.
The primary-stage booster, making its eighth flight, will touch down on the drone ship ‘Of Course I Still Love you’ about eight and a half minutes after launch.
The booster, tail number B1077, first flew in October 2022, carrying Crew 5 to the International Space Station aboard Dragon Endurance. It went on to fly the GPS III F6, Inmarsat I6-F2, CRS-28, and Intelsat G-37 missions, plus two Starlink delivery flights.
Deployment of the 23 Starlink satellites right into a 182×177 mile (293×285 km) orbit is scheduled to occur 1 hour, 5 minutes and 38 seconds after launch.
Tonight’s launch will likely be the ninetieth orbital mission for SpaceX within the last 12 months, roughly a launch every 4 days on average. Company officials have said they hope to speed up the pace of launches and make 100 flights in 2023, surging to a complete of 144 in 2024.