Watch as SpaceX test-fires Falcon 9 ahead of Starlink launch (members only)

After a lull in launch activity this fall, SpaceX teams at Cape Canaveral are preparing for up to four Falcon 9 missions in December to close out 2019 with a surge of launches.

A Falcon 9 rocket aborts its lift off at the final moment on February 28, 2016, as seen from the press site at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The rocket was supposed to launch the SES 9 communication satellite and had already been delayed by fueling problems and a boat that strayed into the launch danger area off shore.

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft closed out a six-day test flight in low Earth orbit Friday with an on-target splashdown in the Atlantic Ocean, and officials hailed the ship’s performance before it flies with astronauts for the first time later this year.