SpaceX kicked off its countdown to the New Year with the launch of the first of three planned rockets to conclude 2024. A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 22 satellites took off on Saturday from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
The launch, which took place at 8:48 PM from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E), successfully placed the satellites into low Earth orbit around 65 minutes later, as reported by Space.com.
With two more launches still on the schedule, this launch marked SpaceX’s 132nd Falcon launch of 2024. The upcoming missions include a commercial communications satellite and another batch of Starlink satellites.
Kiko Dontchev, SpaceX’s vice president of launch stated, "We are now aiming for 134 launches—just two short of our previous target—to conclude 2024 on a high note. Here’s to an exciting final few days of 2024 and an even more promising 2025!"
Approximately eight minutes after liftoff, the first stage of Falcon 9 made a successful landing on the droneship "Of Course I Still Love You" in the Pacific Ocean. This marked the 16th landing for the booster, with twelve of its previous flights dedicated to Starlink missions.
Notably, this was SpaceX's 88th Starlink broadband internet satellite launch of the year, bringing the Starlink megaconstellation to nearly 6,700 active satellites. SpaceX's focus remains on safety and reliability, with Dontchev emphasizing, "Ultimately, there is only one number that truly matters: ZERO failures. Our priority is—and will continue to be—safety and reliability above all else"
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