A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stands at Launch Complex 39A in preparation for launching the Starlink 10-7 mission. Image: Spaceflight Now
SpaceX is preparing for the second of three planned launches over the weekend. A Falcon 9 rocket will send 23 Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit after launching from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.
Liftoff from historic Launch Complex 39A is set for 7:23 a.m. EDT (1123 UTC). Spaceflight Now will have live coverage beginning about an hour prior to liftoff.
The Falcon 9 first stage booster supporting this mission, tail number B1073, will launching for a 17th time. It previously launched the ispace Hakuto-R lunar lander, the Bandwagon-1 rideshare flight and 11 Starlink missions.
About eight and a half minutes after liftoff, B1073 will land on the SpaceX droneship, ‘A Shortfall of Gravitas.’ This will be the 79th booster landing on ASOG and the 337th booster landing to date.
Heading into Sunday’s launch opportunity, the 45th Weather Squadron forecast a 90 percent chance of favorable weather at liftoff.