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A new stack of Starlink satellites were sent into space by the first launch of the year from Florida.
The rocket was launched at 4:49 pm. A stack of 49 Starlink satellites were carried from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station here in Florida.
The company's first successful launch and landing of the new year took place around nine minutes after liftoff, when the rocket's first stage returned to Earth.
"Falcon 9 has successfully lifted off from Launch Complex 39 at Kennedy Space Center, carrying our stack of 49 Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit," said the engineer during the broadcast.
The Starlink satellite megaconstellation was launched in photos.
Mother Nature did not miss a beat after the weather forecasters at the 45th Space Delta predicted ideal weather for liftoff. It was a clear day in Florida and the rocket could be seen throughout its climb through the atmosphere, but its first stage separated from the rocket and it began its journey back to Earth.
The 49 Starlink satellites were successfully deployed about 20 minutes after liftoff.
The Starlink satellites were launched from Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The credit is given to the company, SpaceX.
The California-based company has another action-packed year in store. The new record for most launches in a single year was set by the company. Four private citizens flew on the Inspiration4 mission, which was one of three Crew Dragon missions the company launched.
The company will try to keep up its rapid launch pace this year as it expands its internet constellation. The company's third dedicated rideshare mission is on deck this month and is devoted to launching a lot of small satellites.
The company will send a radar satellite into space for the Italian space agency after that launch. The satellite is called COSMO-Skymed Second Generation.
The constellation is growing.
An artist's depiction of the Starlink internet satellites. The image is from the SpaceX.
The 35th dedicated Starlink launch since the beginning of the year was on Thursday. The number of Starlink satellites has gone up to almost 2,000.
The company is trying to launch newly upgraded satellites. The company equipped the satellites with special laser links to enable them to communicate. The satellites can communicate more effectively without relying on ground relays.
This launch will feature a slightly different trajectory than normal, with the rocket flying southeast from the coast of Florida, as opposed to the typical northeast path that recent missions have taken. To avoid flying over populated areas, it will have to fly north of the Bahamas.
One of the five orbital shells that the company is working to fill with 4,400 satellites is a parking spot a few hundred miles above the Earth.
At various altitudes above the planet, these shells will be located between 335 and 548 miles (540 and 560 kilometers) and at an inclination of 53, 51.2, 70, and 98.6 degrees. The inclination is the angle between the plane and the equator.
The 53-degree shell has been filled and the rest is being worked on. Thursday's launch will fill another spot in the 53.2-degree circle, but will take a different route to get there.
Starlink's goal is to connect people around the globe, particularly those in rural and remote areas who have little to no internet. The service is fully operational in 20 countries, and that number keeps rising. The program has more than 100,000 subscribers.
The fourth flight of the falcon.
The "A Shortfall of Gravitas" is a drone ship. The credit is given to the company, SpaceX.
The rocket game was changed in 2015 by the recovery of the first first-stage booster. The company provided a series of upgrades to its workhorse, the Falcon 9. The souped-up Falcon 9 rocket we see today is capable of flying many times over, thanks to a more robust thermal protection system, titanium grid fins and a more durable interstage.
The company relies on a lot of used rockets to deliver its many payloads into space. The mission is the same.
The rocket featured in Thursday's flight has five successful missions under its belt. In November 2020 it carried an upgraded gps III satellite into space for the space force. It was the second time that a booster was recovered after a mission. In June 2020, the first-ever recovery as part of a government mission occurred when the previousGPS III launch occurred.
It was the first to fly a second government satellite seven months later, and it was the second to be launched. The rocket launched the first private astronauts mission: Inspiration4.
The flight was part of a huge effort to raise money for the hospital. Four private citizens boarded a Crew Dragon spaceship and spent three days on the Earth.
The same booster that carried the internet satellites into space in the fourth act returned to Earth and landed on a floating platform at sea Thursday evening.
"A Shortfall of Gravitas" is the newest drone ship. The number of drones in the fleet increased to three in the year 2021. These massive ships are crucial components in the grand scheme of reusability and will allow them to fly more rockets.
The company's most prolific ship, "Of course I Still Love You", switched coasts so that rockets launching from the West Coast facilities would have more options for landing.
There are two ways in which to recover a rocket: by landing them on a floating platform at sea or by returning to land. Not every mission has enough fuel to return to land, so when landing on terra firma, the rockets are usually landed on the drones.
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