KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. – Just up range from where another Falcon 9 shot off the launchpad a few days ago, SpaceX conducted its second launch within a week carrying more Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit.
The rocket took off at 6:01 a.m. Sunday from Kennedy Space Center launchpad 39A. Inside the Falcon 9′s nose cone were another 60 internet-beaming satellites for SpaceX’s Starlink constellation, which now exceeds 1,200 spacecrafts orbiting the Earth.
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Space Force weather forecasters with the 45th Space Wing gave the launch window a 90% chance of good liftoff conditions. Cloud cover was the only weather concern Sunday morning.
The early morning launch is the 22nd dedicated to delivering Starlink satellites, but SpaceX has also sent up its own spacecraft on other ride-sharing rockets.
On Thursday. SpaceX launched 60 Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station about a mile down the coast.
SpaceX engineers said they now have more than 10,000 Starlink internet customers, a number that will need to grow substantially if SpaceX wants to make ends meet with this internet service venture and fund its other endeavors, including the Starship spaceship under development in Texas.
In a post on Reddit, the Starlink team announced it’s expanding its international service to western Germany, the southern United Kingdom and parts of New Zealand.
The Starlink kits are available for pre-order and cost $499 at Starlink.com. The kits include a router, power supply, cables and mounting tripod for a small satellite dish, many of its first customers have nicknamed “dishy.” The dishes need to be placed outside in a clear area for best results, according to SpaceX.
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