SpaceX is launching 60 more Starlink satellites today. Here’s how to watch live.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying 60 new Starlink internet satellites for the Starlink-3 mission stands atop Space Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida one day before its planned Jan. 27, 2020 launch into orbit.
The private spaceflight company SpaceX will launch 60 new Starlink satellites to join its growing broadband internet megaconstellation in orbit today (Jan. 27), and you can watch it live online.
You can watch SpaceX’s Starlink launch webcast here on Space.com, courtesy of SpaceX, beginning about 15 minutes before liftoff. You can also watch the launch directly from SpaceX here.
SpaceX has a 50% chance of good launch weather today, according to the 45th Weather Squadron of the U.S. Air Force, with thick clouds and “disturbed weather” as the chief concern.
Video: See SpaceX’s 1st Starlink satellites in the night sky
In Photos: SpaceX launches third batch of 60 Starlink satellites to orbit
The goal of SpaceX’s Starlink project is to provide constant, high-speed internet access to users around the world through a massive constellation of broadband internet satellites operating in low Earth orbit. Users on the ground would then only need a small terminal that’s no bigger than a laptop to gain internet access.
The majority of SpaceX’s missions in 2020 will consist of Starlink launches as the company works to expand its fleet of internet-beaming satellites, including at least one more batch of 60 Starlink satellites scheduled to launch before the end of January. SpaceX CEO and founder Elon Musk has said the company will need at least 400 Starlink satellites in orbit to offer “minor” broadband coverage, and at least 800 to provide “moderate” coverage.
Related: SpaceX’s 1st Starlink megaconstellation launch in photos!
According to the company, Starlink commercial internet services could debut in parts of the U.S. and Canada after about half a dozen more launches, with global coverage after 24 launches. SpaceX’s president and chief operating officer Gwynne Shotwell has said that coverage could begin sometime this year, but the company has not yet announced pricing for its new service.
Related: Why SpaceX’s Starlink satellites caught astronomers off guard
During today’s launch, SpaceX aims to recover the Falcon 9’s first-stage booster with an offshore landing on its drone ship Of Course I Still Love You.
Visit Space.com today for complete coverage of SpaceX’s Starlink launch.
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