SpaceX drone ship heads to sea for Falcon 9’s next Starlink launch and landing – Teslarati

An upgraded SpaceX drone ship is headed roughly 630 kilometers (~390 mi) into the Atlantic Ocean to aid Falcon 9’s next Starlink originate and landing.

SpaceX’s 11th Starlink originate this One year by myself, the mission may perchance maybe be the 12th operational (v1.0) originate and 13th Starlink originate total, together representing some 700 operational satellites in orbit. In step with a May perchance well even fair 2020 interview with SpaceX COO and President Gwynne Shotwell, these public beta assessments can easiest open up after 14 Starlink launches are performed, while fresh FCC filings present that SpaceX is easiest serious about v1.0 satellites as phase of the operational constellation. In other words, if winning, Starlink-12 would leave SpaceX fair correct two launches away from a constellation giant ample – or almost so – to open up public net service beta assessments.

Meanwhile, the Falcon 9 rocket assigned to the mission may perchance be on the verge of breaking SpaceX’s booster reuse turnaround file – currently space at 51 days between launches by the identical booster assigned to Starlink-12.

Is named Falcon booster 9 B1058, the SpaceX rocket grew to turn out to be the first US automobile to originate astronauts since 2011, sending NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley to the Worldwide Arena Situation (ISS) aboard a Crew Dragon spacecraft. After a winning May perchance well even fair 30th originate, the spacecraft docked with the ISS roughly two days later and spent greater than two months in orbit sooner than returning to Earth in early August.

Meanwhile, booster B1058 saved busy while the spacecraft it launched modified into as soon as being attach through its paces in orbit. On July 20th, the rocket overwhelmed SpaceX’s turnaround file when it launched South Korea’s ANASIS II communications satellite fair correct 51 days after supporting Crew Dragon’s inaugural astronaut originate. Whereas that 51-day turnaround did damage SpaceX’s old file of 62 days, it also space a far loftier file, unseating NASA’s Arena Shuttle to turn out to be the most impulsively reusable orbital-class rocket ever constructed.

As of now, Falcon 9 B1058 is scheduled to originate Starlink-12 no earlier than (NET) 2: 17 pm EDT (UTC-4) on Thursday, September 17th. Barring delays, that may perchance maybe list a 59-day turnaround from the booster’s file-breaking second originate. If Starlink-12 launches by September 19th, B1058 may perchance maybe be the proud holder of both SpaceX’s first and second-spot turnaround facts and ought to level-headed have technically flown three cases in ~110 days.

After Starlink-12, SpaceX targets to originate Starlink-13 in leisurely-September month and has scheduled its third US militia GPS III originate – that includes fresh Falcon 9 booster B1062 – no earlier than (NET) September 30th. Whereas unlikely, if the entirety stays on time table, September 2020 may perchance maybe be the first four-originate month in SpaceX’s history.

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