Coming up at 9:09 p.m. PT (04:09 UTC on July 20), SpaceX plans to launch the first batch of V2 Mini Starlinks from the West Coast. The launch will take place from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base.
Originally meant to launch yesterday evening, the countdown was aborted 5 seconds before lift-off. SpaceX did not specify a reason for the abort, however, during the first attempt of the night, the launch director paused the countdown due to a “perceived leak in the second stage,” which was heard in the company’s Mission Control Audio stream on YouTube.
Standing down from tonight’s Falcon 9 launch of @Starlink; now targeting Wednesday, July 19 for liftoff
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 19, 2023
SpaceX did say the vehicle and payloads were healthy and as of now, still pushing towards a launch attempt this evening.
This mission, Starlink 6-15, is the first time SpaceX will launch the Version 2 mini-satellites from the West Coast, previously having only launched Versions 1 and 1.5. SpaceX just launched the last planned V 1.5 satellites on July 15th.
V2 missions from the East Coast have launched 21 or 22 satellites at a time, however, this mission will feature 15 of the V2 mini-satellites. The satellites will launch South from Vandenberg Space Force Base and be inserted into a 43-degree orbital inclination.
The Falcon 9 launching this mission is Booster 1071, on its 10th flight. This booster has previously supported the launches of 4 Starlink missions, 2 NRO national security missions, 2 commercial payloads, and 1 NASA science mission. About eight and a half minutes after launch, B1071 will attempt a landing on the droneship ‘Of Course I Still Love You’ and then be towed back to the Port of Long Beach.
Be sure to catch the launch here!
Questions or comments? Shoot me an email at rangle@teslarati.com, or Tweet me @RDAnglePhoto.
