SpaceX F9 - Starlink Group 5-1 - SLC-40

Launch Date: December 28
Launch Window: 4:45am EST (1:45am PST, 0945 GMT)
Launch site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS), Florida
Core Booster Recovery: ASDS - ASOG
Booster: B1062.11
Fairings: Reused
Mass: ? Starlink 2.0 Satellites
Orbit: LEO
Yearly Launch Number: 60th

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the 66th group of satellites for SpaceX’s Starlink broadband network, a mission designated Starlink 5-1. This will be the first launch of Starlink 2.0 satellites.

List of starlink launches and status today

"SpaceX Falcon 9 1.1 Launch Sequence at Vandenberg AFB" by jurvetson is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Admin note: Image added as thumbnail for Blog.

 

[Cosmacelf]

Interesting this is being launched from the east coast rather than the west coast for essentially a polar orbit.

 

[scaesare]

Off-topic comment: @Grendal your post came through weird for me. Your profile pic/info is at the bottom rather than the left. @Cosmacelf 's seems fine. Is it some moderator special power?

 

[danny]

Off-topic comment: @Grendal your post came through weird for me. Your profile pic/info is at the bottom rather than the left. @Cosmacelf 's seems fine. Is it some moderator special power?

This is because this thread was turned into an "Article Thread" for the Blog. That changes up the format a little to make it more blog-like.

 

[scaesare]

Ahh... ok. I had that happen with one of my posts a while back, and I didn't realize it was "accessible" from both locations, so never went back and looked at it in the forum view...

Thanks.

 

[Grendal]

 

[Grendal]

There are Starlink V2.0 satellites on board. It doesn't clarify whether all of them are 2.0's.

 

[Cosmacelf]

There are Starlink V2.0 satellites on board. It doesn't clarify whether all of them are 2.0's.
View attachment 889431

Where does it say v2.0 sats? All I see is reference to new orbits.

 

[Grendal]

Where does it say v2.0 sats? All I see is reference to new orbits.

Here's a whole article about it:

SpaceX's first "next-gen" Starlink satellites are suspiciously familiar

In a strange twist, SpaceX says that its next Starlink mission will launch 54 satellites into low Earth orbit (LEO), implying that they’re roughly the same size as the V1.5 satellites it’s already launching – not the larger V2 or V2 Mini satellites discussed in recent FCC filings. However, the...

www.teslarati.com

 

[HVM]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1608050003616075777

Deployment of 54 Starlink satellites confirmed!

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1608050353131642880

 

[ecarfan]

Is this the first launch where the webcast host did not appear on camera? Maybe Jesse was home in her PJs doing the narration.

159 successful booster landings!

This moment is always one of my favorites during a night launch; when the grid fins come out and are illuminated by the RVac.

 

[Cosmacelf]

Is this the first launch where the webcast host did not appear on camera? Maybe Jesse was home in her PJs doing the narration.

It’s happened before, and I have little doubt that’s what happened given the timing of the launch!