July 19 (UPI) — SpaceX successfully launched an additional batch of Starlink satellites into space Wednesday night from California after aborting a launch attempt a day earlier.
The Falcon 9 rocket with a payload of 15 Starlink orbitals launched through thick fog at 9:09 p.m. PT from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
Liftoff! pic.twitter.com/CzetVZFGbv— SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 20, 2023
The satellites were deployed into low Earth-orbit and the first-stage booster returned to Earth where it landed upon the Of Course I Still Love You droneship in the Pacific Ocean, marking its 10th successful flight.
The launch was SpaceX’s 48th of the year and 247th all time, and occurred after officials scrubbed a late Tuesday attempt to put the handful of orbitals into space. No reason for the abortion was given.
The company, which is aiming for more than 100 launches in 2023, has sent hundreds of rockets into space since Falcon 9 saw its first successful launch in 2010.
Around 4,822 satellites for the company’s Starlink constellation have been launched of which 3,734 have been placed in operational orbit, according to an online tracker.
