The Starlink 17-13 mission also represents the 180th Falcon 9 launch from pad 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base. Liftoff is scheduled for 5:59:59 p.m. PST (8:59:59 p.m. EST / 0159:59 UTC).
The comments came during a fireside chat featuring former NASA administrators, Charlie Bolden and Jim Bridenstine, at the conclusion of the American Astronautical Society’s 2025 von Braun Space Exploration Symposium in Huntsville, Alabama.