SpaceX Launches More Starlink Satellites Into Orbit Thursday
Thursday April 03, 2025
(Launch photo courtesy of SpaceX)
Updated--It had been delayed from April First but on Thursday, April 3rd a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocketed lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County right on time at 6:02 PM PDT.
It was carrying 27 more Starlink satellites.
It was the fifth flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched NROL-126, Transporter-12, SPHEREx, and NROL-57.
Following stage separation, the first stage returned to earth and landed on the Of Course I Still Love You droneship stationed in the Pacific Ocean off the Southern California coast about 8 minutes after launch.
If you were in the right place you may have heard one or more sonic booms just before the first stage touched down around 6:10 PDT.
Meanwhile the second stage completed the mission to deploy the satellites into low earth orbit.
That deployment usually comes about an hour after launch.