On Friday November 3rd at 8:37:20 pm EDT, SpaceX successfully launched its next group of Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit from LC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The Falcon 9 rose into clear night skies then headed southeast. B1058 served as the first stage on its eighteenth flight. It previously supported Crew-2, ANASIS-II, CRS-21, Transporter 1 and 3, plus twelve Starlink missions, including 6.17 on September 19th. This was the 268th launch of the reliable rocket, the 79th this year, and the 60th of 2023 from the Space Coast of Florida.
Photos credit: Sarah Howard and Dennis Hlavsa
Thirty-five minutes before launch, super-chilled RP-1 kerosene flowed into both stages. Liquid oxygen, needed for combustion, began to fill simultaneously. For spectators, the T-20 big vent confirms fueling progress. Sixteen minutes before t-zero, LOX flowed in the second stage, which is always a brand-new vehicle. Computers ensured milestones were executed on time, including engine chill-down, tank pressurization and ignition.
Booster B1058 separation occurred 2:29 seconds later. As the second stage ignited its lone engine moments later, the first performed a flip maneuver to start its reuse journey. Grid fins and cold gas thrusters aligned the descending stage. Six minutes after launch, three engines ignited for the entry burn. This began to slow down the rocket as it lowered to the Atlantic Ocean. Aligned with A Shortfall of Gravity, an automated barge, the landing burn allowed B1058 to gently touch down on the automated barge’s deck.
As the second stage continued to propel the payload, the fairings which protect the cargo during atmospheric ascent, split in two then peeled away from the rocket. They coasted to the ocean, slowed by parachutes. Doug, stationed nearby, will scoop the fairing halves for reuse.
Second stage fired for six minutes then shut down to enter a coast phase. One short burn occurred before deploying 23 Starlink V2 mini satellites, about an hour and five minutes after launch. The spent stage performs adjustments to line it up with entry and burn-up over the Indian Ocean. Starlink 6.26 group will join over 5,000 operational machines, providing high-speed low-latency internet to underserved rural locations, cruise ships, airlines, and mobile users.
Add comment
Comments