SpaceX Launches Another 60 Satellites

SpaceX launched another 60 satellites on April 22nd at 3:30pm EDT on a Falcon 9 rocket from LC-39A at the Kennedy Space Center. With this mission, Falcon 9 raised its total number of satellites launched to 420. Eight minutes or so after launching, SpaceX drone ship Of Course I Still Love You, (staged about 630 kilometers down range), the fourth flight of this first stage, B1051 came down for a landing on the ship. Falcon 9 on this date also completed its 84th rocket launch surpassing United Launch Alliance’s AtlasV rocket.

SpaceX’s launch of Starlink 6 moved to the “left” (one day earlier) after a seven day delay.  After two back-to-back unsuccessful booster landings, the successful landing of the first stage is significant as DM-2, planned for launch May 27, 2020 will return American astronauts from American soil to space from the exact same launch pad,  LC-39A. Some saw yesterday’s launch from LC-39A a sign that Elon Musk was confident that the risks for another booster anomaly had been mitigated ahead of DM-2.

SpaceX  CEO and founder Elon Musk said on Twitter on Wednesday that the cause of the failure of a single Merlin engine during the most recent Starlink launch (which didn’t prevent the launch from ultimately succeeding at its mission) was the result of an undetected, “small amount” of a cleaning fluid that ignited during the flight.

SpaceX’s media launch protocol for Starlink 6 included a serious stance of compliance with regards to the Coronavirus guidelines for the safety and health of others. Masks, gloves, and a minimal social distancing of 10’ strictly enforced at all times. With DM-2 scheduled on May 27th, a little over a month from now, we had a glimpse into how these guideline implemented yesterday could be duplicated as the expected crowd of media is expected to be at full capacity for the launch of American Astronauts from American soil as we return to space flight and the International Space Station since 2011.

As for the Starlink missions, astronomers and others in the space industry remain concerned on the amount of influence the next 42,000 satellites that SpaceX would like to option over the next decade. Musk’s plans to provide global internet will have an obvious impact no matter which side you're on, there are many more Starlink missions planned for 2020.

For now, the focus has shifted to Demo-2, as the next chapter of space flight continues with “astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken on a mission to the International Space Station on Wednesday, May 27” form  the very same launch pad of the last batch of 60 plus Starlink satellites were launched into orbit on April 22nd.