Live Coverage: SpaceX to launch batch of Starlink satellites from the West Coast

SpaceX is counting down to a West Coast launch of another batch of satellites for its Starlink internet service Thursday.

Liftoff of the Starlink 17-17 mission is scheduled during a launch window that opens at 4:03 p.m. PDT (7:03 p.m. EDT / 2303 UTC). The mission was original scheduled for March 24 but was delayed two days for unknown reasons, presumably payload or vehicle issues.

Spaceflight Now will have live coverage of the launch starting about 30 minutes before liftoff.

The Falcon 9, with 25 Starlink satellites inside its payload fairing, will take a southerly trajectory on departure from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base, in California.

The first stage booster for this mission, serial number B1081 is making its 23rd flight. It entered service on the East Coast with the launch of the Crew 7 space station mission in August 2023. It went on to fly the CRS-29, PACE, Transporter-10, EarthCARE, NROL-186, Transporter-13, TRACERS, NROL-48 and COSMO-SkyMed Second Generation FM3 missions, plus 12 previous Starlink deliveries.

About 8.5 minutes after liftoff, B1081 will make a landing on the drone ship, ‘Of Course I Still Love You,’ it will mark the 186th touchdown on this vessel and the 591st booster landing for SpaceX to date.

The stack of Starlink satellites will be deployed from the Falcon 9’s second stage just over an hour into flight.