SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket is set for liftoff from Cape Canaveral on Friday evening, heading due east over the Atlantic Ocean to deliver the SES 9 television broadcast satellite into orbit 31 minutes later.
The 229-foot-tall rocket is poised for launch from Complex 40 at 6:35 p.m. EST (2335 GMT) Friday at the opening of a 91-minute launch window.
Perched atop the rocket is the SES 9 communications satellite, a 11,620-pound (5,271-kilogram) spacecraft made by Boeing, ready to beam television programming, data services and mobile connectivity to homes, businesses, ships and airplanes in the Asia-Pacific and the Indian Ocean region.
The timeline below outlines the launch sequence for the Falcon 9 flight with SES 9. It does not include times for the experimental descent and landing attempt of the first stage booster, which SpaceX says is unlikely to succeed due to the high speed required for the SES 9 launch.
SpaceX’s landing platform is positioned about 400 miles (650 kilometers) east of Cape Canaveral for the first stage landing attempt, which is expected around 10 minutes after liftoff.
Data source: SpaceX
T-0:00:00: Liftoff
After the rocket’s nine Merlin engines pass an automated health check, hold-down clamps will release the Falcon 9 booster for liftoff from Complex 40.
T+0:01:13: Mach 1
The Falcon 9 rocket reaches Mach 1, the speed of sound.
T+0:01:24: Max Q
The Falcon 9 rocket reaches Max Q, the point of maximum aerodynamic pressure.
T+0:02:36: MECO
The Falcon 9’s nine Merlin 1D engines shut down.
T+0:02:40: Stage 1 Separation
The Falcon 9’s first stage separates from the second stage moments after MECO.
T+0:02:47: First Ignition of Second Stage
The second stage Merlin 1D vacuum engine ignites for an approximately 6-minute burn to put the rocket and SES 9 into a preliminary parking orbit.
T+0:03:42: Fairing Jettison
The 5.2-meter (17.1-foot) diameter payload fairing jettisons once the Falcon 9 rocket ascends through the dense lower atmosphere. The 43-foot-tall fairing is made of two clamshell-like halves composed of carbon fiber with an aluminum honeycomb core.
T+0:09:01: SECO 1
The second stage of the Falcon 9 rocket shuts down after reaching a preliminary low-altitude orbit. The upper stage and SES 9 begin a coast phase scheduled to last more than 18 minutes before the second stage Merlin vacuum engine reignites.
T+0:27:07: Second Ignition of Second Stage
The Falcon 9’s second stage Merlin engine restarts to propel the SES 9 communications satellite into a supersynchronous transfer orbit.
T+0:27:55: SECO 2
The Merlin engine shuts down after a short burn to put the SES 9 satellite in the proper orbit for deployment. SpaceX has programmed the engine to burn until the second stage’s propellant tanks are nearly empty instead of timing the engine cutoff to put the SES 9 spacecraft into a specific orbit. The adjustment allows the rocket to put SES 9 into the highest orbit possible.
T+0:31:24: SES 9 Separation
The SES 9 satellite separates from the Falcon 9 rocket in an orbit with a predicted high point of about 39,300 kilometers (24,400 miles), a low point of 290 kilometers (180 miles) and an inclination of 28 degrees. Due to the decision to burn the second stage nearly to depletion, there is some slight uncertainty on the orbital parameters based on the exact performance of the launcher.
SpaceX is finishing up preparations for a major test of a rocket-powered abort system for the company’s new Dragon crew ferry spacecraft, targeting launch from Cape Canaveral in March after a pair of Falcon 9 missions in February.
Wrapping up SpaceX’s fourth operational resupply flight to the International Space Station, a Dragon cargo capsule departed the high-flying research complex, dropped out of orbit and descended to a parachute-assisted splashdown in the Pacific Ocean with nearly 3,300 pounds of biological specimens and hardware.
The mission will bring the total number of orbital launches from Florida in 2024 to 72, tying the total for 2023. Liftoff happened on Wednesday at 5:47 p.m. EDT (2147 UTC) from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
