SpaceX’s SES O3b mPOWER mission was successfully launched on Sunday, November 12th, sending two communication satellites into medium Earth orbit (MEO).
The Falcon 9 rocket, carrying these satellites, took off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 4:08 p.m. EST (2108 GMT).
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The Falcon 9’s first stage made a successful vertical touchdown on the company’s drone ship “A Shortfall of Gravitas” about 8.5 minutes after liftoff. The rocket’s upper stage will not be recovered, as is typical for Falcon 9 flights.
Two hours after liftoff, the rocket’s upper stage will deploy the first of the two satellites into MEO, around 5,000 miles (8,000 km) above Earth. Seven minutes later, the second satellite will be deployed.
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The two Boeing-built spacecraft aboard the flight will expand the O3b constellation of communication satellites operated by provider SES S.A. of Luxembourg, expected to provide high-speed connectivity to a variety of customers in both government and private industries starting in late 2023.
The Falcon 9 booster on the flight flew on eight previous missions, five of which were dedicated to building out Starlink, SpaceX’s megaconstellation of broadband internet satellites, currently consisting of more than 5,000 operational satellites.
The SES O3b mPOWER mission marked SpaceX’s 84th launch of the year.
