SpaceX scrubs launch of 54 more Starlink satellites

Watch a replay of our coverage of the first launch attempt for SpaceX’s Starlink 4-34 mission at Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The countdown Sept. 13 was scrubbed due to lightning. The Starlink 4-34 mission will launch SpaceX’s next batch of 54 Starlink broadband satellites. Follow us on Twitter.

Replay of Sept. 13 launch attempt

SpaceX called off a launch attempt Tuesday at Cape Canaveral due to lightning, delaying liftoff of a Falcon 9 rocket and 54 more Starlink internet satellites by 24 hours until Wednesday night.

The Falcon 9 rocket was scheduled to lift off from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 10:10 p.m. EDT Tuesday (0210 GMT Wednesday) to begin the Starlink 4-34 mission. The launcher will deliver the next 54 satellites into orbit for SpaceX’s global broadband network, called Starlink, providing consumer-grade connectivity to users in 40 countries.

But the launch team scrubbed the launch attempt shortly after 9:30 p.m. as lightning flashes lit up the sky over Florida’s Space Coast. The risk of lightning is one of the key weather parameters monitored at Cape Canaveral before every launch.

SpaceX rescheduled the launch for a backup opportunity at 9:48 p.m. EDT Wednesday (0148 GMT Thursday). The weather forecast for Wednesday night is also iffy, with 50-50 odds of acceptable conditions for liftoff. The primary weather concerns are again associated with the threat of lightning.

The launch will mark the 176th flight of a Falcon 9 rocket, the 42nd Falcon 9 launch of the year, and the third Falcon 9 mission this month. It will be the 61st SpaceX mission primarily devoted to deploying Starlink internet satellites.

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Follow Stephen Clark on Twitter: @StephenClark1.