SpaceX Launched Another 52 Starlink Satellites and Landed a Rocket at Sea

SpaceX has delivered another batch of 52 Starlink Internet satellites into orbit.

The launch of a Falcon 9 rocket with the satellites on board was carried out from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 7:32 p.m. EDT.

Less than nine minutes later, the Falcon 9 first stage returned to Earth, making a successful landing on the autonomous floating platform A Shortfall of Gravitas in the Atlantic Ocean. According to SpaceX, this was the fourth mission for this first stage.

There are currently around 3,400 Starlink satellites in orbit and the company plans to launch thousands more to build up Starlink's capabilities.

From next year, SpaceX plans to launch the next generation of satellites, Starlink Version 2, which are much larger and more powerful than those currently in orbit. They will be able to be connected to using a conventional smartphone. To this end, SpaceX has already signed an agreement with the American mobile operator T-Mobile as part of the Coverage Above and Beyond project. In addition, SpaceX plans to deliver Starlink V2 into orbit aboard the next-generation Starship spacecraft, which will also be used to deliver cargo and people to the Moon and Mars.

This was SpaceX's 43rd orbital mission in 2022, a new record for the company. SpaceX's previous record for rocket launches in a year was set in 2021, when 31 rockets were launched in a year.