The new year is off to a great start for the space company.
The second-most satellites ever lofted on a single mission were carried into the sky by a rocket.
Today's flight, called Transporter 6, was the 15th mission for the first stage of the Falcon 9 and tied a reusability record that was set last month. It was the 161st successful rocket landing for the company.
There are 8 ways that the space company has changed spaceflight forever.
At 9:56 a.m., the falcon 9 lifted off. Transporter 6 is the sixth dedicated small-satellite mission by the company. The 114 payloads on the flight include cubesats, microsats, Picosats and Orbital Transfer Vehicles carrying spacecraft to be deployed at a later time.
Three dozen of those cubesats are called "SuperDoves" and are the size of a loaf of bread.
Among the many satellites flying on Transporter 6 are six craft that will be operated by a Virginia-based space analytics company, as well as the first satellite in a seven-satellite, agriculture-focused constellation.
The network will study farmlands and forests around the world if everything goes as planned. Customers will be able to monitor crop growth and health with its data.
"This launch will allow us to provide even deeper and more accurate insights for our customers and partners," Artiom said.
The image is the first of three.
The first stage came back down to Earth about 2.5 minutes after liftoff. The journey home ended six minutes later when the booster touched down.
The Falcon 9 first stage has been used for many flights. The company launched 10 different Starlink internet satellite missions, as well as the company's Transporter-2 rideshare mission.
The upper stage of the Falcon 9 continued to carry its cargo up in the air. After launch, the first 114 satellites will be put into service. Just over 90 minutes after the liftoff, the last one will separate from the rocket.
The Transporter 6 satellites were going to be deployed in a number of different ways. The company was not able to confirm that each of those actions had taken place.
"We were able to confirm 77 of the deployment," the engineer said. It can be difficult to confirm deployment in real time because the smallsats on this mission are close to each other. The social media channels of the company will be updated on any remaining deployment.
The mission fell short of the most-satellites-launched record despite being packed. The mark is held by Transporter-1, which sent more than 140 satellites to space.
Small-satellite operators can use big rockets like the Falcon 9 and India's PSLV, as well as other options. They can get dedicated rides on small vehicles, such as Rocket Lab's Electron or Virgin Orbit's air-launched Launcher One.
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