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SpaceX’s Busy Evening Plans
SpaceX is gearing up for a highly active evening with three Falcon 9 rocket launches scheduled today. This intense flurry of orbital activity is set to take place from both coasts within a roughly five-hour time frame.
Launch Details
The first rocket is slated to carry the Eutelsat 36D telecommunications satellite into geostationary transfer orbit from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The launch window opens at 5:52 p.m. EDT (2152 GMT).
Following this, two missions focused on expanding SpaceX’s Starlink broadband megaconstellation in low Earth orbit are on the agenda. One mission will deploy 23 Starlink satellites from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station starting at 9:02 p.m. EDT (0102 GMT on March 31). The second mission will launch 22 Starlink craft from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 10:30 p.m. EDT (7:30 p.m. California time; 0230 GMT on March 31).
Watch Live Coverage
You can catch live broadcasts of all three launches via SpaceX’s X platform. Coverage for the Eutelsat 36D mission will commence 15 minutes ahead of the launch window, while coverage for the Starlink missions will begin five minutes prior to each respective window.
Sea Landings
All three launches will include rocket landings on ships at sea, with the Falcon 9’s first stage touching down approximately 8.5 minutes post liftoff. This will mark the 12th landing for the Eutelsat 36D Falcon 9, and the 18th and 15th landings for the rockets launching the Starlink missions.
Satellite Deployments
Once operational in geostationary orbit at about 22,000 miles (35,400 kilometers) above Earth, Eutelsat 36D will deliver TV broadcasting services to clientele in Europe, Russia, and Africa. The 45 satellites launched today as part of the Starlink missions will join over 5,600 operational broadband satellites already in low Earth orbit.
This trio of launches follows SpaceX’s recent streak of back-to-back missions, which included a Starlink satellite launch, the classified USSF-124 mission for the U.S. Space Force, and the IM-1 private moon-landing mission, all conducted in under 24 hours using Falcon 9 rockets.
Note: Catch these gripping launches unfold live as SpaceX demonstrates its consistent commitment to pushing boundaries in space exploration.
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