SpaceX lifts off 24 Starlink satellites in midnight launch from Florida

SpaceX launched 24 more of its Starlink internet satellites from Florida’s Space Coast early Saturday morning (November 30).

A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 24 Starlink spacecraft lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at midnight EST (05:00 GMT) on Saturday.

The Falcon 9’s first stage returned to Earth as planned about eight minutes after liftoff and landed on the SpaceX Just Read the Instructions drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean.

A black and white first stage of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket sits on the deck of a ship at sea.

The first stage of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket rests on the deck of a drone ship shortly after 24 Starlink internet satellites were launched into orbit from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on November 30, 2024. (Image credit: SpaceX)

According to a SpaceX mission description, it was the sixth launch and landing of this particular launch vehicle. Three of these flights were Starlink missions.

The Falcon 9’s upper stage continued to propel the 24 Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit and deposited them there about 65 minutes after liftoff, SpaceX reported on X.

Related: Starlink satellite train: How to see and track it in the night sky

If all goes according to plan, the Starlink launch will be the first leg of a dual rocket launch Saturday morning for SpaceX.

The company also plans to launch the NROL-126 mission for the US National Reconnaissance Office and 20 Starlink aircraft on Saturday at 3:10 a.m. EST (0810 GMT) from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

Editor’s note: This story was updated at 2:20 a.m. ET on November 30 with news of the successful launch, rocket landing and satellite deployment.

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