CAPE CANAVERAL SPACE FORCE — SpaceX launched more than 20 Starlink v2-mini satellites on Sunday evening, making it the first Starlink mission of the year to be sent from the Sunshine State.

What You Need To Know

  • More than 20 Starlink satellites have been launched

  • The Falcon 9 left Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station

The company’s Falcon 9 rocket left Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 5:35 p.m. ET, stated SpaceX.

It was originally set to launch at 4 p.m. ET, but the company did not state why it was pushed back.

If Sunday night’s launch was scrubbed, the next attempt would have been Monday, Jan. 8, at 4:01 p.m. ET.

The Starlink 6-35 mission is the second launch from the Sunshine State of 2024, with the first one being SpaceX’s Ovzon 3 mission.

For Sunday’s mission, the 45th Weather Squadron on Saturday gave an 80% chance of good launch conditions, with the only concern being the thick cloud layers rule.

Go here to learn about NASA’s launch weather criteria for the Falcon 9 rocket.

Going into the black

Before this launch, SpaceX’s first-stage booster B1067 for the Starlink 6-35 mission has an impressive 15 successful missions under its ample 12-foot-wide belt, if it wears one:

After the first-stage separation, the Falcon 9’s booster landed on A Shortfall of Gravitas droneship that will be out in the Atlantic Ocean.

About the mission

The Starlink 6-35 mission is expected to send up 23 satellites to low-Earth orbit, where they joined thousands of its mechanical siblings as they provide internet service to many parts of the globe.

Starlink is owned and operated by SpaceX.

Before the launch, astronomer Dr. Jonathan McDowell of Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics recorded the current information on the Starlink satellites:

  • 5,288 are in orbit
  • 5,252 in working order
  • 4,604 are in operational orbit

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