SpaceX launches 29 Starlink spacecraft aboard Falcon 9 to low Earth orbit

SpaceX Adds 29 More Starlink Satellites from Florida

SpaceX began Monday (Dec. 14) with another Starlink mission, successfully launching 29 satellites into low Earth orbit from Florida despite a less-than-ideal weather forecast.

Falcon 9 Beats the Weather

A Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 12:25 a.m. EST (0525 GMT). Although forecasters were worried about high winds and cumulus clouds, the weather cooperated enough for the rocket to climb safely through the atmosphere.

Roughly 8 minutes and 40 seconds after liftoff, the two-stage vehicle had reached space. The upper stage then entered a coast phase, followed by a second burn of its Merlin engine, setting up the deployment of 29 Starlink broadband satellites (Group 6-82) about an hour into the mission.

First Stage Returns to Drone Ship

While the upper stage continued on toward orbit, the first stage executed its return-to-Earth sequence. After separating, the booster flipped, fired its engines and headed back toward the Atlantic Ocean, targeting the autonomous drone ship “A Shortfall of Gravitas.”

Touching down on four deployable landing legs, the booster, designated B1092, completed its ninth flight. It had previously flown on missions CRS-32, NROL-69, GPS III-7, USSF-36 and four earlier Starlink launches.

Starlink Launch Cadence Stays High

Monday’s liftoff from Florida came just a day after another successful Starlink launch from California, underscoring SpaceX’s rapid launch pace.

The East Coast mission was SpaceX’s 163rd Falcon 9 flight of 2025, with another launch already planned for Tuesday (Dec. 16) from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, not far from Cape Canaveral.