SpaceX Launches New Batch of Starlink Satellites

SpaceX is set to launch another batch of 29 Starlink V2 Mini satellites to low Earth orbit on its Falcon 9 rocket Thursday afternoon. Liftoff from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station is scheduled during a four-hour launch window that opens at 3:26 p.m.

EST, or 2026 UTC. A launch on Thursday would break a pad turnaround record for SpaceX, following close on the heels of the NROL-77 mission, which took place just two days earlier. The mission, designated Starlink 6-90, marks the company’s 161st orbital launch of the year and its 118th flight in 2025 carrying Starlink satellites.

Live coverage of the event will begin about an hour prior to liftoff. SpaceX will utilize the Falcon 9 booster B1083 for this mission, which will be its 16th flight after previously supporting missions like IM-2, Polaris Dawn, and Crew-8.

Approximately 8.5 minutes after liftoff, booster B1083 will aim for a landing on the drone ship, Just Read the Instructions, positioned in the Atlantic Ocean. If successful, this will be the 137th landing on this vessel and the 549th booster landing for SpaceX to date.

According to Spaceflight Now, the successful launch of these satellites will further enhance global internet coverage and demonstrate ongoing advancements in satellite technology and logistics.