Q&A with Greg Wyler, founder and chairman of OneWeb (members only)

A European Ariane 5 rocket delivered two commercial communications satellites to orbit Thursday after Arianespace’s ground team lost telemetry from the launcher during its climb into orbit, raising concerns that the mission might have failed. The SES 14 and Al Yah 3 satellites are confirmed in orbit and healthy, but the parameters of their orbits are unknown. Both were heading toward 22,000-mile-high geostationary perches over the equator.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket took off from launch pad 39A, a historic facility under lease from NASA, and delivered to orbit an uncrewed supply ship heading for the International Space Station. The first stage booster returned to a landing at nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the first such recovery on land in daylight.

Two communications satellites owned by SES are booked to fly into orbit — possibly from South Texas — on a pair of Falcon 9 rockets in 2017, giving SpaceX two payloads that could be assigned to launch from the new commercial spaceport, officials said Wednesday.