SpaceX launches 28 Starlink satellites on new Falcon 9 rocket from California

SpaceX introduced a new Falcon 9 rocket into its fleet on Sunday (Nov. 23), with he launch of 28 satellites for its Starlink megaconstellation in low Earth orbit.

The launch, from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, took place on Sunday at 3:48 a.m. EST (0848 GMT or 12:48 a.m. PST local time). The Starlink satellites were successfully deployed one hour and 19 minutes into the flight.

In the interim, the Falcon 9’s first stage, Booster 1100 (B1100) made its first touchdown on a drone ship, “Of Course I Still Love You,” stationed in the Pacific Ocean. The landing occurred about eight and a half minutes after the rocket’s launch, according to a page about the flight on the SpaceX website.

The Starlink satellites (Group 11-30) added to the more than 9,000 units that comprise the commercial broadband internet network.

Sunday’s launch was the second Starlink mission in as many days, following a flight from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Saturday. That liftoff had been SpaceX’s 150th Falcon 9 launch of the year.