Falcon 9

Live coverage: SpaceX rocket delivers 52 more Starlink internet satellites into orbit

SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket Wednesday at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California with 52 Starlink internet satellites, following a two-day delay to allow more time for pre-flight checkouts and to give priority to launch of a SpaceX crew mission launch from Florida. Liftoff of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg occurred at 4:10 p.m. PDT (7:10 p.m. EDT; 2310 GMT).

Falcon 9

Live coverage: Multinational crew docks at space station

A multinational crew from the United States, Japan, and Russia launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center at 12 p.m. EDT (1600 GMT) Wednesday in pursuit of the International Space Station. The four-person crew rode a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft to docking at the space station at 5:01 p.m. EDT (2101 GMT) Thursday to begin a five-month science expedition.

Falcon 9

Russian cosmonaut set to ride U.S. crew capsule to International Space Station

Cosmonaut Anna Kikina will become the first Russian crew member to launch on a U.S. spacecraft since 2002 when she straps into a seat aboard SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance capsule Wednesday for a flight to the International Space Station, opening a new chapter in the U.S.-Russian partnership in orbit that a senior Russian space agency official hopes can be extended past the current end date of 2024, despite souring relations on Earth.