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SpaceX Prepares for Record-Breaking Launch
In a significant nod to reusable rocket technology, SpaceX is set to execute a night launch early Saturday featuring a booster that has previously achieved the remarkable feat of flying to space 25 times.
The launch will involve a Falcon 9 rocket, scheduled for liftoff at 1:14 a.m. from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40. There are backup windows available until 2:15 a.m., along with an additional launch opportunity on Sunday starting at 12:41 a.m.
According to forecasts from Space Launch Delta 45’s weather squadron, there is an 80% likelihood of favorable conditions for the launch. This probability rises to 95% if the launch is postponed until Sunday.
The first-stage booster aims to extend its record further by successfully landing for the 26th time. SpaceX plans to implement a recovery operation using its droneship, “A Shortfall of Gravitas,” positioned downrange in the Atlantic Ocean.
This booster has a noteworthy history, having been employed in two crewed missions—Crew-3 and Crew-4—as well as two supply missions to the International Space Station, among other previous flights. Its inaugural journey took place on June 3, 2021.
SpaceX currently maintains five boosters with at least 20 missions each still in service. Of these, two have completed 23 missions, while three others reached similar milestones but were either retired without a landing attempt to deliver payloads to a higher orbit or, in one instance, tipped over during landing.
The company’s goal is ambitious, aiming to reuse each booster up to 40 times in total.
If successful, this launch will mark the 15th from the Space Coast in 2025, with SpaceX accounting for all but one of those missions.
Looking ahead, SpaceX has another Starlink launch scheduled from Cape Canaveral as early as next Tuesday at 6 p.m. This mission will also see one of its recovery droneships stationed off the coast of the Bahamas, positioning residents on certain islands to potentially experience a sonic boom.
The Kennedy Space Center’s next confirmed launch will take place on February 26, with a Falcon 9 rocket planned to deliver a lander bound for the Moon, developed by Intuitive Machines. However, it is possible that SpaceX will conduct additional launches from KSC before this scheduled flight.
The U.S. Space Force is gearing up for a busy year, ready to support as many as 156 launches from various providers in 2025, averaging roughly 13 per month. Notably, SpaceX is expected to perform the majority of these missions, having successfully launched 88 out of 93 missions in 2024 from the Kennedy Space Center or Cape Canaveral.
Meanwhile, Blue Origin has already conducted its first launch of 2025, which marked the maiden flight of its New Glenn rocket in January. United Launch Alliance (ULA), which completed five launches in 2024, awaits certification for its Vulcan rocket from the Space Force before proceeding with its next mission. This upcoming ULA flight may involve an Atlas V rocket carrying the first set of operational Amazon Project Kuiper satellites, although a launch date has yet to be announced.
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Overnight SpaceX launch to use booster for record 26th flight (2025, February 17) retrieved 17 February 2025 from https://phys.org/news/2025-02-overnight-spacex-booster-26th-flight.html
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