Photos: Falcon 9 breaks apart en route to ISS

The Starlink 11-4 mission was the 111th orbital launch for SpaceX from pad 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base. Liftoff happened at 3:02 p.m. PST (6:02 p.m. EST, 2302 UTC).

Officials from NASA, research institutions and companies involved in the development and launch of the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite briefed reporters in the mission Sunday, the day before its scheduled liftoff from Cape Canaveral.

SpaceX ran a Falcon 9 rocket through a customary preflight checkout Tuesday, filling it with super-cold propellants and firing its nine Merlin first stage engines in preparation for liftoff Friday on a resupply run to the International Space Station.