<snip>
2537-EX-ST-2023 (https://apps.fcc.gov/oetcf/els/reports/STA_Print.cfm?mode=current&application_seq=130587&RequestTimeout=1000) Mission 2198 Starlink Group 7-16
NET February [10] from Vandenberg
ASDS North 30 6 19 West 116 57 37 (7-14, 7-16)
North 29 52 50 West 116 45 3 (7-15, 7-17)
https://nextspaceflight.com/launches/details/7472QuoteStarlink Group 7-16
Launch Time
NET February 2024
https://www.fly.faa.gov/adv/adv_spt.jsp
SPACE X STARLINK 7-15 VANDENBERG SFB CA
PRIMARY: 02/22/24 0424Z-0846Z
BACKUP: 02/23/24 0402Z-0824Z
02/24/24 0341Z-0803Z
02/25/24 0319Z-0741Z
02/26/24 0257z-0719z
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https://twitter.com/breadfrom/status/1758646662799446120QuoteHearing from a source that SpaceX is now targeting March 4 for the launch of Transporter-10.
https://nextspaceflight.com/launches/details/7472QuoteStarlink Group 7-16
Launch Time
NET March 2024
Starlink 7-17 successfully launched earlier today UTC. Is this the next Vandenberg Falcon 9 launch, or Starlink 8-1?
140000Z MAR 24
NAVAREA XII 148/24(21).
EASTERN NORTH PACIFIC.
MEXICO.
1. HAZARDOUS OPERATIONS, SPACE DEBRIS
190220Z TO 190651Z, 200220Z TO 200651Z,
210221Z TO 210652Z, 220222Z TO 220653Z,
230223Z TO 230654Z, 240224Z TO 240655Z,
AND 250224Z TO 250655Z MAR
IN AREA BOUND BY
30-38.00N 117-19.00W, 30-23.00N 117-19.00W,
29-32.00N 117-06.00W, 29-12.00N 116-48.00W,
28-58.00N 116-22.00W, 29-18.00N 115-56.00W,
29-42.00N 116-06.00W, 30-04.00N 116-28.00W,
30-37.00N 117-12.00W.
2. CANCEL THIS MSG 250755Z MAR 24.
NGA Space Debris notice that is effectively a Rocket Launching notice.
SPACE-X STARLINK 7-16, VANDENBERG SFB, CA
PRIMARY: 03/19/24 0220Z-0651Z
BACKUP: 03/20/24 0220Z-0651Z
03/21/24 0221Z-0652Z
03/22/24 0222Z-0653Z
03/23/24 0223Z-0654Z
03/24/24 0224Z-0655Z
03/25/24 0224Z-0655Z
Of Course I Still Love You droneship is outbound from the Port of Long Beach to support Starlink 7-16.
CelesTrak has pre-launch SupGP data for the @Starlink Group 7-16 launch from Vandenberg SFB on 2024-03-19 at 02:28:00 UTC: https://celestrak.org/NORAD/elements/supplemental/table.php?FILE=starlink-g7-16. Deployment of 20 satellites at 03:30:26.260 UTC. Data for 12 backup launch opportunities also provided: https://celestrak.org/NORAD/elements/supplemental/.
SpaceX is targeting Monday, March 18 for a Falcon 9 launch of 22 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Liftoff is targeted for 7:28 p.m. PT, with backup opportunities available until 11:10 p.m. PT. If needed, additional opportunities are also available on Tuesday, March 19 starting at 7:38 p.m. PT.
A live webcast of this mission will begin on X @SpaceX about five minutes prior to liftoff. Watch live.
This is the 10th flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched SDA-0A, SARah-2, and seven Starlink missions. (=B1075-10) Following stage separation, the first stage will land on the Of Course I Still Love You droneship, which will be stationed in the Pacific Ocean.
I was going to hit the road in an hour, now I might hold.
Targeting Monday, March 18 for a Falcon 9 launch of 22 @Starlink
satellites to low-Earth orbit from California → http://spacex.com/launches
A special weather statement has been issued for Los Angeles CA, Pasadena CA, and East Los Angeles CA until 4:45 PM PDT
A special weather statement has been issued for San Buenaventura CA, El Rio CA and Saticoy CA until 4:15 PM PDT
Less than one hour, weather is 80% go and all systems are ready for tonight’s launch of 22 @Starlink satellites from California
Propellant is flowing into Falcon 9 ahead of tonight’s 10th Vandenberg launch of the year
Fairing separation (not shown).
T+4 minutes.
Starshield payloads maybe?Fairing separation (not shown).
T+4 minutes.
Technical difficulties with the Stage 2 camera?
And the booster lands again.
What SpaceX calls "a Monday".
The contrail from tonight’s @SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket launch, which took off from Vandenberg SFB, California. The rocket’s contrail could be seen over a large swath of SoCal, and beyond. I got outside just in-time to hear the sonic booms and get a few images!
BTW it looks all but certain to me that 2 out of 22 Starlink satellites on just-launched Group 7-16 are actually “Starshield” sats of the US military:
* Mysterious drop outs in live camera feeds from the 2nd stage during ascent
* No forward looking camera views seen as per usual practices
* CelesTrak only getting names of 20 satellites despite SpaceX saying 22 has launched
* This launch is targeting 306 x 316 km, somewhat higher than the 276 x 285 usually used for Group 7 launches lately. And despite this orbit insertion was at an astonishing low 138 km when recent Group 7 launches have SECO-1 at ~152 km high.
Updated orbital launch count as of Mar. 18 (Mar. 19 UTC):
Earth 🌎 — 50/51
USA 🇺🇸 — 30/30
China 🇨🇳 — 11/11* (1 partial failure)
Russia 🇷🇺 — 3/3
Japan 🇯🇵 — 2/3
Iran 🇮🇷 — 2/2
India 🇮🇳 — 2/2
1/3
Orbital launches by organization:
🇺🇸 — 26 SpaceX, 3 Rocket Lab, 1 ULA
🇨🇳 — 7 CASC (1 partial failure), 2 CASIC, 1 OrienSpace, 1 CAS Space
🇷🇺 — 3 RKK Energiya
🇯🇵 — 2 MHI, 1 Space One ❌
🇮🇳 — 2 ISRO
🇮🇷 — 1 IRGC, 1 ISA
2/3
Launches by spaceport:
🇺🇸 — 12 Cape Canaveral, 10 Vandenberg, 5 KSC
🇨🇳 — 4 Xichang, 3 Jiuquan, 2 offshore, 2 Wenchang
🇳🇿 — 3 Māhia
🇷🇺 — 1 Plesetsk, 1 Baikonur, 1 Vostochny
🇯🇵 — 2 Tanegashima, 1 Space Port Kii
🇮🇳 — 2 Satish Dhawan
🇮🇷 — 1 Shahrud MTS, 1 Semnan
3/3
🚨#BREAKING: Thousands of people are witnessing a spectacular jellyfish vapor across night sky
📌#LosAngeles | #California
Currently, across Southern California and into Arizona, millions are witnessing a spectacular event after SpaceX launched their Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, producing a stunning jellyfish-like vapor trail. Some people are concerned, thinking it might be a nuclear warhead launching or even calling it a UFO, but it’s just SpaceX doing their thing.
🚨#UPDATE: More incredible footage shows the jellyfish rocket vapor from the SpaceX Falcon 9 launch, as seen from Arizona.
CelesTrak has ephemeris-based SupGP data for all 20 satellites from the Starlink Group 7-16 launch (2024-050) atop a Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg SFB on Mar 19 at 0228 UTC. https://celestrak.org/NORAD/elements/supplemental/table.php?INTDES=2024-050
Apparently there were 20 Starlinks and 2 Starshield satellites on board.
https://twitter.com/ShorealoneFilms/status/1769982003183866328
https://twitter.com/ShorealoneFilms/status/1769985798945018367
Can someone help me with the math? I plug in 137 km altitude at 27361 km/hr to some equations and I get that it should be in an orbit of 137 km x -550 km orbit (that's negative, i.e. within the earth). Does SpaceX use earth's surface based numeric displays?
Can someone help me with the math? I plug in 137 km altitude at 27361 km/hr to some equations and I get that it should be in an orbit of 137 km x -550 km orbit (that's negative, i.e. within the earth). Does SpaceX use earth's surface based numeric displays?
The quoted speed is Earth-relative, not inertial.
Can someone help me with the math? I plug in 137 km altitude at 27361 km/hr to some equations and I get that it should be in an orbit of 137 km x -550 km orbit (that's negative, i.e. within the earth). Does SpaceX use earth's surface based numeric displays?
The quoted speed is Earth-relative, not inertial.
Earth-relative to where? The launch site? Do I need to do a 3D vector subtraction?
Interestings. I wonder what Hartman's sources are that mean he thinks he can confirm.
It's possible; we'll see if appropriate catalog entries eventually appear. But I am not convinced yet.
https://twitter.com/Cosmic_Penguin/status/1769921066594639961QuoteCosmic Penguin @Cosmic_Penguin
BTW it looks all but certain 2 out of 22 Starlink satellites on just-launched Group 7-16 are actually “Starshield” sats of the US military:
* Mysterious drop outs in live cam feeds from the 2nd stage during ascent
* No forward looking camera views seen as per usual practices.
QuoteSpace-Track has now cataloged the NROL-123 Electron launch. There are actually FOUR payloads: "USA 352", MOLA, Aerocube 16A and Aerocube 16B. (Likely the earlier statement of 3 implies that AC-16A/B were deployed attached to each other and then separated?).QuoteUSA 352 is presumably an NRO payload. AC-16A/B are cubesats from the Aerospace Corporation. It is known that the Naval Postgrad School was developing a cubesat called Mola, so that's probably the other one.
https://twitter.com/planet4589/status/1771270082758426710
The identification of the Electron payload 2024-053A as "USA 352" changes the balance of evidence on the Mar 19 Starlink Group 7-16 launch: it now seems likely that it DID carry two classified payloads, likely Starshield, to be designated USA 350 and USA 351 (59274/59275?)
Space-Track have cataloged objects from the Mar 19 Starlink launch and it is now confirmed that two secret satellites were aboard, USA 350 and USA 351 (presumed Starshield sats) that are cataloged as 2024-050W and X (59274 and 59275).