A SpaceX rocket launches Friday July 22, 2022 from Vandenberg Space Force Base on the California coast. Credit: SpaceX
A SpaceX rocket pierced through low clouds Friday when it launched from the California coast and carried another batch of Starlink satellites into orbit.
Clouds obscured the view of the launch pad, but video captured the Falcon 9 rocket as it soared above the clouds seconds after liftoff from Vandenberg Space Force Base northwest of Santa Barbara. The rocket carried 46 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit.
The first stage booster returned to Earth, landing on the Of Course I Still Love You droneship in the Pacific Ocean.
The launch was 24 hours after an initial attempt was scrubbed seconds before liftoff when the flight computer detected a problem with the position of a valve in one of the rocket’s engines, according to SpaceX.
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SpaceX has a Starlink constellation of more than 2,000 satellites orbiting Earth about 340 miles up. The satellites have been shuttled into space by SpaceX rockets.
The Starlink network is designed to deliver high-speed internet anywhere around the globe. SpaceX said in March that there are about 250,000 total Starlink subscribers, which includes both consumers and enterprise customers.
If light conditions are right, the satellites appear in a train as they parade across the night sky.
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The satellites are sometimes visible in the first few minutes after sundown and before sunrise when the sun is below the horizon, but the satellites are high enough to reflect direct sunlight.
Use the FindStarlink tracker to find the best upcoming viewing times.
