15th launch of the year for SpaceX, as B1058 flies again
Falcon 9 Booster B1058 lofts a mixed-customer payload as SpaceX launched their 15th rocket of the year; the first stage was successfully recovered minutes later. Image: Theresa Cross, Spaceflight Insider
Saturday evening, May 15 at 6:56 p.m. EDT, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched from LC-39A at NASA Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
A daytime, weekend launch was a welcome sight on the Space Coast, with the Falcon 9 launch visible for miles around. Veteran Spaceflight Insider correspondent Mark Usciak captured the launch from the Max Brewer Bridge, in Titusville. Credit: Mark Usciak, Spaceflight Insider
The rideshare mission for SpaceX carried 52 Starlink satellites, a Capella Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite, and the Tyvak-0130 on board. Falcon 9 booster B-1058 made its eighth trip to space, following a thirty eight day turnaround. SpaceX fleet drone-ship ‘Of Course I still Love You’, supported by GO Quest, recovered the first stage 620km down- range. Of note, the SpaceX video feed from the returning booster remained crisp and uninterrupted by any signal or energy interference – this is believed to be a first.
Starlink satellites fly closer to earth than prior solutions, in fact some sixty times closer. This allows for a much lower latency (the time it takes to send data from one point to the next), which allows the system to support services that traditional internet satellites cannot, due to their distance.
The company is also delivering more success stories of Starlink satellites delivering high-speed broadband internet to rural areas and remote locations previously unable to obtain quality access to the internet.
Today’s mission brings the total number of Starlink satellites to 1,685, of which 1,614 are still orbiting.
Theresa Cross
Theresa Cross grew up on the Space Coast. It’s only natural that she would develop a passion for anything “Space” and its exploration. During these formative years, she also discovered that she possessed a talent and love for defining the unique quirks and intricacies that exist in mankind, nature, and machines. Hailing from a family of photographers—including her father and her son, Theresa herself started documenting her world through pictures at a very early age. As an adult, she now exhibits an innate photographic ability to combine what appeals to her heart and her love of technology to deliver a diversified approach to her work and artistic presentations. Theresa has a background in water chemistry, fluid dynamics, and industrial utility.
