Live coverage: SpaceX to launch 20 Starlink satellites on Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg SFB

File: A Falcon 9 rocket stands ready to launch a Starlink mission. Image: SpaceX

SpaceX is preparing to launch another Falcon 9 rocket in the pre-dawn hours of Tuesday morning The flight will add another 20 Starlink satellites to the megaconstellation.

The Starlink 9-9 mission features 13 satellites that include Direct to Cell capabilities. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base is set for 4:44 a.m. PDT (7:44 a.m. EDT, 1144 UTC).

Spaceflight Now will have live coverage beginning about 30 minutes prior to liftoff.

The Falcon 9 first stage booster supporting the mission, tail number B1075 in the SpaceX fleet, will launch for a 14th time. It previously supported the flights of Transporter-11, SARah-2, SDA-0A and 10 Starlink missions.

A little more than eight minutes after liftoff, B1075 is set to land on the SpaceX droneship, ‘Of Course I Still Love You.’ If successful, this will be the 106th booster landing on OCISLY and the 360th booster landing overall.

The addition of the latest baker’s dozen of DTC Starlink satellites bring the total of that type of satellite to 272.