December 23, 2024

Watch live as SpaceX launches more than four dozen Starlink satellites today

SpaceX is prepared to send out another batch of its Starlink web satellites into orbit, and you can view the action live.A Falcon 9 rocket is poised to launch 49 Starlink spacecraft from NASAs Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida at 1:13 p.m. EST (1813 GMT). You can enjoy it here at Space.com, thanks to SpaceX, or straight through the company. SpaceX launch webcasts typically start 15 to 20 minutes before liftoff.The 49 brand-new SpaceX craft will sign up with more than 1,800 functional satellites in the businesss Starlink constellation, according to data put together by Jonathan McDowell, an astrophysicist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics who likewise keeps close tabs on satellites and area debris.Related: The advancement of SpaceXs rockets in picturesA SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket (right) bring 49 new Starlink internet satellites stands atop Pad 39A of NASAs Kennedy Space Center ahead of a planned Feb. 3, 2022 launch. (Image credit: SpaceX) This batch of Starlinks, called Group 4-7, will lift off right after two other batches did. Starlink groups 4-5 and 4-6 launched from KSC effectively on Jan. 6 and Jan. 19, respectively. SpaceX likewise performed Starlink launches throughout most months of 2021. SpaceX eventually wants to have as lots of as 42,000 satellites in the Starlink megaconstellation. While the business promotes advantages to individuals residing in remote locations who do not have access to traditional internet services, the constellation postures an increased risk of orbital accidents and could mar huge observations, critics have said.Nevertheless, SpaceX has dedicated to a quick cadence of launches for Starlink in 2022 to continue developing out its constellation and broadening its service to more rural areas.The launch of Group 4-7 was originally scheduled for recently but has been delayed numerous times due to bad weather disrupting SpaceXs launch of Italys CSG-2 Earth-observation satellite. CSG-2 raised off Monday (Jan. 31) from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, which is next door to KSC.Starlink 4-7 will conclude a hectic week for SpaceX. In addition to CSG-2, the business launched the NROL-87 spy satellite for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office from Californias Vandenberg Space Force Station on Wednesday (Feb. 2). Follow Elizabeth Howell on Twitter @howellspace. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook..