SpaceX sent 21 of its Starlink internet satellites to orbit on Monday atop a Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The Falcon 9’s first stage came back to Earth as planned. It touched down about 8.5 minutes after liftoff on the drone ship Just Read the Instructions, which was stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.
It was the 10th launch and landing for this particular booster, according to a SpaceX mission description.
The Falcon 9’s upper stage, meanwhile, kept on flying. It’s scheduled to deploy the 21 Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit (LEO) about 65 minutes after liftoff.
It was SpaceX’s 62nd orbital mission of 2023, setting a new record for most flights in a year.
Source: Qatar News Agency