Live coverage: SpaceX supply ship returns to Earth

This was the 98th launch of Starlink satellites in 2025. SpaceX executed liftoff of the Starlink 11-21 mission from pad 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, at 5:43 p.m. PDT (8:43 p.m. EDT / 0043 UTC).

The privately-funded, Israeli-built Beresheet spacecraft failed Thursday during its historic attempt to land on the moon, seeking to become the first mission to reach the lunar surface without significant government backing. The landing was expected to occur at 1925 GMT (3:25 p.m. EDT).

SpaceX’s launch team loaded liquid propellants into the company’s first upgraded Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket Friday at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and the countdown rehearsal culminated in a brief ignition of the launcher’s nine Merlin main engines on the launch pad.