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SpaceX’s Friday launch sends Starlink smallsats soaring and a breaks a record of 21 recoveries of this Falcon 9’s booster

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Photo captured on Friday, May 17, by Satnews from SpaceX video stream.

Success on Friday, May 17 at 8:32 p.m. ET, as Falcon 9 launched 23 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. This was the company’s 36th dedicated Starlink launch of the year and a record was broken.

For the first time in SpaceX’s rocket fleet, booster tail number B1062, was launched and recovered on its 21st flight. This rocket previously launched GPS III Space Vehicle 04, GPS III Space Vehicle 05, Inspiration4, Ax-1, Nilesat 301, OneWeb Launch 17, ARABSAT BADR-8, and now 14 Starlink missions.

Photo captured on Friday, May 17, by Satnews from SpaceX video stream.

The launch of Starlink 6-59 mission added 23 more satellites to the low Earth orbit internet constellation.

According to the most recent statistics published by expert orbital tracker and astronomer Jonathan McDowell, as of the morning of May 17, there were 6,017 total Starlink satellites on orbit and 5,941 in operation.

SpaceX’s Friday Cape Starlink smallsat launch weather permitting

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SpaceX’s Falcon 9 will launch a batch of Starlink communications satellites on Friday May 17 from Space Launch Complex 40 Cape Canaveral from 4:52 – 9:01 PM PDT.

Falcon 9 is a two-stage rocket designed and manufactured by SpaceX for the reliable and safe transport of satellites and the Dragon spacecraft into orbit. The Block 5 variant is the fifth major interval aimed at improving upon the ability for rapid reusability.

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SpaceX schedules Friday for Starlink Group 6-59 launch

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Photo captured on Tuesday, May 14, by Satnews from SpaceX video stream.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 will launch a batch of Starlink communications satellites on Friday May 17 from Space Launch Complex 40 Cape Canaveral from 4:52 – 9:01 PM PDT.

The forecast calls for a temperature of 80°F, overcast clouds, 99% cloud cover and a wind speed of 12mph.

Space Launch Complex 40 has witnessed the launch of 241 rockets, including 241 orbital launch attempts, while Cape Canaveral, FL, USA, has been the site for 952 rocket launches.

The cost is factored to be $52M.

SpaceX has launched 6436 Starlink satellites to date.