SpaceX is counting down to the launch of a Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, carrying another 25 satellites for its Starlink internet service.
Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 4 East is scheduled for 9:29:49 p.m. PDT (12:29:49 a.m. EDT / 04:29:49 UTC). The Falcon 9 will depart from the central California coast on a southerly trajectory, as it targets an orbit of 258 x 246 km, with a 97-degree inclination.
Spaceflight Now will have live coverage starting about 30 minutes prior to liftoff.
The Starlink 17-27 mission is SpaceX’s 46th Falcon 9 launch of the year and will use a first-stage booster making its 21st flight. Booster B1082 entered the SpaceX fleet in January 2024 and has already launched 17 previous Starlink delivery missions. It also flew the USSF-62, OneWeb Launch 20, and NROL-145 missions.
A little more than eight minutes after liftoff, the first stage will target a landing on the drone ship, ‘Of Course I Still Love You,’ positioned in the Pacific Ocean. The 25 Starlink V2 Mini satellites stacked atop the second stage will deploy about an hour into flight.