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Brevard Space Coast Launch Site Rocket SpaceX ULA NASA
Here’s a quick look at what rockets launch from Brevard’s various launch sites.
After a two-week grounding, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket fleet is scheduled to resume flights with Starlink missions launching after midnight from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.
Welcome to the FLORIDA TODAY space team’s live coverage of the Starlink 10-9 mission. After two delays, SpaceX is scheduled to lift off from Launch Pad 39A at 1:45 a.m. EDT on Saturday. The Falcon 9 will deploy 23 Starlink internet satellites packed inside a fairing on top of the 230-foot rocket. There will be an opportunity for a backup launch until 4:21 a.m. if needed.
No sonic booms are expected in Central Florida. The rocket’s first stage booster is scheduled to ascend along a northeasterly trajectory before landing on a SpaceX drone ship at sea about eight and a half minutes after liftoff.
SpaceX’s live webcast, hosted on X (formerly Twitter), will be available approximately five minutes before launch and will be posted below a countdown clock.
Cape Canaveral: Is there a launch today? SpaceX, NASA, and ULA scheduled rocket launches in Florida
Update 12:52 AM: In a statement released Thursday night, SpaceX officials provided details about why the Falcon 9 upper stage rocket failed during a July 11 launch from California.
“Post-flight data review confirmed that the Falcon 9 first stage booster functioned normally through ascent, stage separation and drone landing. During the first burn of the Falcon 9 second stage engine, a liquid oxygen leak occurred within the insulation around the upper stage engine,” the statement said.
“The cause of the leak was identified as a crack in the sensing line of a pressure sensor attached to the vehicle’s oxygen system. The line cracked due to fatigue caused by high loads from engine vibrations and loosening of the clamp that normally secures the line,” the statement said.
“Despite the leak, the second stage engine continued to operate through its first burn, then completed engine shutdown and entered the coasting phase of the mission on the planned elliptical parking orbit.”
Update 12:30 AM: The National Weather Service radar loop at Melbourne-Orlando International Airport showed no significant clouds over Cape Canaveral, but widespread rain northwest of Orlando and off Daytona Beach.
Update 12:10am: Brevard County Emergency Management Agency officials have activated the agency’s Launch Operations Support Team in advance of SpaceX’s upcoming Falcon 9 launch.
Update, 11:42 p.m.: More delays. The launch was postponed for nearly another hour until 1:45 a.m. Saturday.
Starlink service to support the 2024 Paris Olympics
Update, 11:31 p.m.: This afternoon, Starlink executives shared a TikTok video showcasing the company’s broadband equipment supporting live coverage of the Olympic torch moving through the streets of Paris.
The opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics took place today.
Update, 11:11 p.m.: SpaceX officials said the launch was now scheduled for 12:59 a.m. Saturday, 38 minutes late.
Update, 11 p.m.: The Space Force’s 45th Weather Squadron estimates there is an 85% chance of suitable weather for the launch.
“The West Atlantic Ridge axis lies north of the spaceport and deep land winds continue to drive the East Coast sea breezes rapidly inland each afternoon. Due to the lingering influence of Saharan dust, weather is drier than normal with low chances of coastal precipitation overnight,” the squadron forecast said.
“The main weather concern for Saturday’s early morning challenge will be cumulonimbus law with scattered coastal showers,” the forecast said.
For the latest news and launch schedules from Cape Canaveral Space Command and NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, visit floridatoday.com/space.
Rick Neal Neil is a space reporter for Florida Today. Contact him at contact addressTwitter/X: Rick Neal 1