SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket Saturday evening from Vandenberg Space Military Base near Lompoc, California.
The mission launched 24 Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit. They will be placed in polar orbit to improve internet service in polar regions.
Starlink mission 17-2 lifted off from Launch Complex 4 East at 9:31 p.m. PDT.
Falcon 9 rocket B1075 completed its 19th spaceflight, during which 16 Starlink missions were carried out.
Approximately 8.5 minutes after launch, the craft landed on the unmanned vessel “Of Course I Still Love You” in the Pacific Ocean.
This was the 142nd landing for the vehicle and the 481st landing for SpaceX.
There are more than 8,000 Starlink satellites in orbit, according to astronomer Jonathan McDowell.
On Thursday, Starlink users experienced a rare blackout that began at 4 p.m. About 2.5 hours later, SpaceX reported that most of the internet connection had been restored. Another hour and a half later, Starlink said the internet was fully restored.
Sourse: www.upi.com
