Update Oct. 8, 1:05 a.m. EDT (0505 UTC): SpaceX confirmed deployment of the Starlink satellites.
SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket Tuesday night, which added another 28 Starlink V2 Mini satellites to its megaconstellation in low Earth orbit.
The Starlink 11-17 mission flew on a south-easterly trajectory upon departure from Vandenberg Space Force Base. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 4 East happened at 8:54 p.m. PDT (11:54 p.m. EDT / 0354 UTC).
SpaceX launched this mission using the Falcon 9 booster with the tail number B1071. This is the second-most flown booster, with this being its 29th flight.
Its previous missions include NASA’s SWOT, five missions for the National Reconnaissance Office and four ride share missions (three Transporter and one Bandwagon).
Nearly 8.5 minutes after liftoff, B1071 performed an autonomous landing on the drone ship, ‘Of Course I Still Love You.’ This was the 156th landing on this vessel and the 516th booster landing to date.