Crew-9 greeted by pod of dolphins following splashdown Tuesday
Moments after Tuesday’s SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule splashdown off Florida’s panhandle, a pod of dolphins begins playing around the capsule.
NASA footage
Launch recap: Scroll down to read updates from the Starlink 6-72 mission, which launched at 11:07 p.m. on Saturday, April 5 from Cape Canaveral SLC-40.
Original story: Those up late have the chance to catch a nighttime rocket launch, as SpaceX plans to launch the next batch of Starlink satellites tonight.
SpaceX has confirmed liftoff is now targeted for 11:07 p.m. Saturday night, yet opportunities exists until 2:40 a.m. Sunday morning. SpaceX typically aims for the beginning of the launch window, yet factors such as weather at the launch and booster landing sites determine exact timing.
The mission, titled Starlink 6-72, will carry a batch of Starlink internet satellites to orbit atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.
Liftoff will be from Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 40. As for first-stage booster, it will land on a SpaceX drone ship on the Atlantic Ocean. No Space Coast sonic booms will be heard.
Update 11:16 p.m.: The first-stage has landed on the Just Read the Instructions drone ship, completing its 19th mission.
Update 11:07 p.m.: Liftoff! The Falcon 9 is off the launch pad!
SpaceX launch webcast begins
Update 11:02 p.m.: SpaceX’s launch webcast hosted on X (formerly Twitter) is now posted above, right below the countdown clock.
Liftoff is scheduled in five minutes from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Update 10:57 p.m.: The Starlink 6-72 mission is set to launch in 10 minutes! Be sure to look toward the area south of Kennedy Space Center.
Update 10:45 p.m.: This will be the 19th flight for the first-stage booster. Previous missions it flew include: 14 Starlink missions, NASA’s Crew-6, SES O3b mPOWER-B, USSF-124, and Bluebird 1-5.
Eight-and-a-half-minutes after launch, the first-stage booster will land on the Just Read the Instructions drone ship, which is stationed out on the Atlantic Ocean.
SpaceX Falcon 9 fueling now underway
Update 10:36 p.m.: Visual cues indicate Falcon 9 fueling procedures are now underway at Launch Complex 40, though SpaceX has yet to make an official announcement.
SpaceX launch prep underway in Brevard
Update 10:33 p.m.: Brevard County Emergency Management officials have activated the agency’s launch operations support team ahead of SpaceX’s upcoming Falcon 9 launch.
SpaceX launch countdown timeline
Update 10:31 p.m.: If SpaceX is launching at 11:07 p.m., we should be seeing fueling soon.
Here’s a behind-the-scenes rundown of SpaceX’s countdown timeline. T-minus:
- 38 minutes: SpaceX launch director verifies “go” for propellant load.
- 35 minutes: Rocket-grade kerosene and first-stage liquid oxygen loading begins.
- 16 minutes: Second-stage liquid oxygen loading begins.
- 7 minutes: Falcon 9 begins engine chill prior to launch.
- 1 minute: Command flight computer begins final prelaunch checks; propellant tank pressurization to flight pressure begins.
- 45 seconds: SpaceX launch director verifies “go” for launch.
- 3 seconds: Engine controller commands engine ignition sequence to start.
- 0 seconds: Liftoff.
Update 10:25 p.m.: Fram2 mission commander, Chun Wang, posted this video of Cape Canaveral which the crew captured from the SpaceX Dragon. Wang posted the view to X (formerly Twitter) while in space, utilizing onboard Starlink internet.
The video shows Florida slowly coming into view.
One of the crew members is heard saying, “I can see our launch pad from here.” The camera zooms into a view of KSC Pad 39A.
Update 10:15 p.m.: SpaceX is still targeting 11:07 p.m. for tonight’s launch. On April 3, SpaceX released a photo of deployment of Starlink satellites after a launch from Vandenberg, CA.
Here is the view of Starlink satellites being released into orbit.
Update 10:01 p.m.: In case you missed it, the first crew to orbit Earth’s poles, Fram2, splashed down safely off the coast of California yesterday. This was the first SpaceX crew to not return off the coast of Florida.
Update 9:47 p.m.: SpaceX, ULA, and Blue Origin have been awarded upcoming Space Force DoD (Department of Defense) launch contracts.
While the majority will be from SpaceX, this means many more DoD launches from all three. While ULA will be launching its Vulcan on DoD missions, Blue Origin is set to launch its New Glenn rocket on missions starting later this spring. Dates for these missions are not yet known.
Update 9:37 p.m.: SpaceX is targeting 11:07 p.m. for liftoff. The Space Force 45th Weather Squadron predicted a 95% chance of favorable weather.
Brooke Edwards is a Space Reporter for Florida Today. Contact her at bedwards@floridatoday.com or on X: @brookeofstars.