A major milestone in spaceflight was reached by SpaceX on Wednesday (November 27) with the successful launch of 24 Starlink satellites aboard a Falcon 9 rocket. The mission, conducted from NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, began at 11:41 pm EST (10:11 am IST, November 28) and marked the Falcon 9’s 400th successful mission since its debut in 2010. The satellites were deployed into low Earth orbit approximately 65 minutes after launch, according to SpaceX’s announcements on X (formerly known as Twitter).

Booster Recovery Highlights Reusability

The first stage of the Falcon 9 returned to Earth approximately eight minutes post-liftoff, landing on the droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas stationed in the Atlantic Ocean. This achievement represented the 375th successful recovery of a Falcon first stage.

Details shared in a mission description confirmed that the booster used in this launch had completed 15 flights, 11 of which were dedicated to Starlink deployments.

Starlink Network Expansion Intensifies

Reports indicate that SpaceX has launched 117 Falcon 9 missions in 2024 alone, with 81 focused on expanding the Starlink satellite constellation. Five such missions have taken place within the past eight days, underlining the company’s accelerated efforts to build out the Starlink network. Astrophysicist and satellite tracker Jonathan McDowell has estimated that nearly 6,700 Starlink satellites are currently active in orbit.

Context and Future Prospects

The Starlink network, the largest satellite constellation in history, is being developed to provide global internet coverage. These launches demonstrate the scalability of SpaceX’s reusable rocket technology, which has significantly reduced the cost of accessing space. Falcon 9 has become a cornerstone of SpaceX’s operations, with each successful mission reinforcing its position as a reliable workhorse for orbital payload delivery. The milestone further cements Falcon 9’s pivotal role in modern space exploration and satellite deployment.