Falcon 9 Rocket Sets New Payload Weight Record During SpaceX Starlink Launch
- by Gizmodo
- Jun 17, 2024
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. The Starlink system now boasts over one million subscribers
and is available on every continent, Antarctica included
. But the heavier, bulkier Gen2s require a rocket that has yet to launch: Starship. Until SpaceX’s new megarocket is deemed flightworthy, the company plans to launch miniature Gen2s featuring the same form factor as V1.5 Starlinks, allowing for launches aboard Falcon 9s.
Back in December, when SpaceX sent the first batch of Starlinks to the Gen2 shell, many spaceflight experts assumed that the company was sending the miniature Gen2s to space. Sleuthing by Harvard-Smithsonian astronomer Jonathan McDowell put these rumors to rest, however, as he learned that SpaceX is still launching V1.5 Starlinks to space
. Today’s launch was likely the same, with a batch of V1.5 Starlinks launched to low Earth orbit. Or at least, that’s my best guess. As McDowell tweeted at the time, “SpaceX are consistently vague in everything they say.” For sure. And it doesn’t help that SpaceX does not respond to questions from the media; so much for CEO Elon Musk’s stated obsession with transparency
.On December 1, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved
the launch of 7,500 Gen2s, out of SpaceX’s planned 29,988. The FCC is deferring its decision on the remaining units until a later time, saying the adjournment “will protect other satellite and terrestrial operators from harmful interference and maintain a safe space environment, promoting competition and protecting spectrum and orbital resources for future use.”
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