SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket launches 50 satellites. See details

SpaceX launched around 50 satellites towards orbit with the help of its Falcon 9 rocket on Tuesday (January 31). The rocket then returned down to Earth in what can be called a pinpoint landing on a ship at sea.

The Falcon 9 rocket had lifted off from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base at 11:15 a.m. EST (1615 GMT, 8:15 a.m. local California time) on Tuesday. The rocket was carrying 49 Starlink spacecraft and a rideshare payload from an Italy-based company D-Orbit.

Around 8 minutes and 45 seconds after launch, the Falcon 9 rocket's first stage returned to Earth and touched down softly on the Of Course I Still Love You droneship of SpaceX in the Pacific Ocean off the California coast.


For this particular booster, it is the seventh launch and landing, as per a SpaceX mission description. This is the 168th touchdown overall for an orbital rocket of SpaceX.

Meanwhile, the upper stage of the Falcon 9 rocket continued to push the 50 payloads to low Earth orbit.


D-Orbit's Ion Satellite Carrier Vehicle #9 (SCV009) will be deployed by it around 58 minutes after lift-off. The spacecraft is an orbital transfer craft, which is carrying a diverse set of payloads of its own.

During a webcast of launch, SpaceX quality system engineering manager Kate Tice said, "The rideshare hosts payloads from the U.S. company EBAD, Munich-based company HPS, the Swiss institute EPFL and the New Zealand company StardustMe."

Around one hour and 17 minutes after launch, the upper stage of the rocket will deploy 49 satellites of Starlink, if everything goes as per plan.

FAQs:

1. Who founded SpaceX?
   Elon Musk
2. What does SpaceX stand for?
   Space Exploration Technologies Corp.