Live coverage: Falcon 9 disintegrates after launch

The change will allow the U.S. Space Force to expedite the process of building out its GPS constellation in medium Earth orbit. The launch date for the next satellite, GPS III Space Vehicle 09, could be within weeks.

The mission is the 40th launch of the year from SpaceX, dedicated to flying its broadband internet satellites. Liftoff of the Starlink 17-14 mission happened at 8:23:09 p.m. PDT (11:23:09 p.m. EDT / 0323:09 UTC).

NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken, assigned to fly SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft on its first piloted mission into orbit, participated in a dress rehearsal of their suit-up procedures and a trip to launch pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Jan. 17, 2020.