CAPE CANAVERAL SPACE FORCE STATION — SpaceX is preparing to launch into the holiday weekend by sending 23 more Starlink satellites into orbit Saturday morning.
Falcon 9 will launch from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on the Starlink Group 6-32 mission.
The original launch window opened at 11 p.m. ET Friday, but was pushed to 12:02 a.m. and then 12:30 a.m. Saturday. Several back up opportunities also exist.
The 45th Weather Squadron is giving 60-70% favorable liftoff conditions, with the only concerns being Thick Cloud Layers Rule and Cumulus Cloud Rule.
Go here to learn about NASA's launch weather criteria for the Falcon 9 rocket.
Going into orbit
This Falcon 9's first-stage booster has 18 successful missions, excluding this one. Previous missions include Crew Demo-2, ANASIS-11, CRS-21, Transporter-1, Transporter-3, and 13 Starlink missions.
After the stage separation, the first-stage booster will land on the droneship Just Read the Instructions in the Atlantic Ocean.
About the mission
The Starlink 6-32 will send 23 Starlink satellites into low-Earth orbit, where they will join the thousands of their mechanical brothers and sisters already up there.
These Starlink V2 Mini satellites each weigh 1,760 pounds (800 kilograms) and will provide internet services to many places around the globe, stated Starlink, a SpaceX company.
Before the launch, Dr. Jonathan McDowell of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics' documented the following Starlink satellite information.
- 5,226 are in orbit
- 5,191 in working order
- 4,557 are in operational orbit