Live coverage: SpaceX to launch Falcon 9 rocket on Starlink mission from Vandenberg Space Force Station

A Falcon 9 rocket stands ready to support the Starlink 7-9 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base. The mission also includes the first six satellites that will be used for the company’s direct-to-cell service. Image: SpaceX

SpaceX hopes to complete another double launch day as it prepares to launch its first Falcon Heavy rocket of the year with a payload for NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The second of the doubleheader boasts 20 Starlink V2 Mini satellites, with 13 featuring Direct to Cell capabilities.

Liftoff of the Starlink 9-2 mission is set for 8:47 p.m. PDT (11:47 p.m. EDT, 0347 UTC). It comes after launching 22 Starlink satellites from Florida at 1:15 p.m. EDT (1715 UTC) on Sunday.

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

The first stage booster supporting this mission, tail number B1075 in the SpaceX fleet, will be launching for an 11th time. It previously supported the launches of the Space Development Agency’s (SDA) Tranche 0 demonstration satellite mission, German military reconnaissance satellites SARah 2 & 3 and eight Starlink flights.

The last time this booster was flown was nearly 100 days ago on the Starlink 7-16 mission on March 19.

A little more than eight minutes after liftoff, B1075 will land on the SpaceX droneship, ‘Of Course I Still Love You.’ This will be the 94th landing on OCISLY and the 322nd booster landing to date.

The mission comes as SpaceX and NASA are preparing to launch a Falcon Heavy rocket on the GOES-U mission, the final satellite in the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites-R (GOES-R) series. Rollout of the rocket to the launchpad at Launch Complex 39A was delayed from Sunday morning.

Teams are keeping a close eye on weather conditions for both rollout and launch operations. The mission is currently targeting liftoff on Tuesday, June 25, at 5:16 p.m. EDT (2116 UTC).

As of the latest weather forecast issued on Saturday, June 23, there is only a 30 percent chance of favorable weather at liftoff on both the primary launch day and the 24-hour backup, on June 26.

Watch pad views here: