SpaceX F9 : Starlink group 7-28 : Florida : TBD 2024

[Ken the Bin]

Thread for the Starlink 7-28 group launch.

Launch TBD 2024, from either KSC LC-39A or CCSFS SLC-40, on booster 10xx-x.  The first stage will land aboard one of the two East Coast ASDS near Exuma Island in the Bahamas.

Payload 22? Starlink V2 Mini satellites to 53 degree inclination orbit on a southeastern trajectory.  Initial orbit ?? x ?? km?

Please use the Starlink Discussion Thread for all general discussion on Starlink.

Check the Starlink Index Thread for links to more Starlink information.


NGA Rocket Launching notice that appears to be for this launch (Starlink Group 6-45).

210012Z MAR 24
NAVAREA IV 338/24(11,26).
WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC.
FLORIDA.
1. HAZARDOUS OPERATIONS, ROCKET LAUNCHING
   292100Z TO 300125Z MAR, ALTERNATE
   2100Z TO 0125Z DAILY 30 MAR THRU 04 APR
   IN AREAS BOUND BY:
   A. 28-39.00N 080-37.69W, 28-39.00N 080-28.00W,
      28-28.00N 080-10.00W, 28-20.00N 080-15.00W,
      28-29.16N 080-32.40W.
   B. 24-55.00N 076-51.00W, 24-57.00N 076-45.00W,
      24-20.00N 076-03.00W, 24-13.00N 075-42.00W,
      24-09.00N 075-37.00W, 24-06.00N 075-34.00W,
      24-00.00N 075-30.00W, 23-53.00N 075-28.00W,
      23-36.00N 075-33.00W, 23-35.00N 075-35.00W,
      23-49.00N 076-04.00W, 24-14.00N 076-19.00W.
2. CANCEL THIS MSG 050225Z APR 24.

[OneSpeed]

NGA Rocket Launching notice that appears to be for this launch (Starlink Group 6-45).

Map from the NGA notice. This appears to be the first Exuma booster recovery, ASDS 613km downrange. A booster dogleg is implied by the areas, so the payload may be less than 23 satellites.

[GWR64]

NGA Rocket Launching notice that appears to be for this launch (Starlink Group 6-45).

Map from the NGA notice. This appears to be the first Exuma booster recovery, ASDS 613km downrange. A booster dogleg is implied by the areas, so the payload may be less than 23 satellites.

Looks like 53° inclination. So the first of these missions?

Five Starlinks from Florida using the new landing area...

0293-EX-ST-2024  Mission 2210 Starlink Group 7-28/Exuma trajectory
0294-EX-ST-2024  Mission 2211 Starlink Group 7-29/Exuma trajectory
0295-EX-ST-2024  Mission 2109 Starlink Group 8-4/Exuma trajectory
0296-EX-ST-2024  Mission 2212 Starlink Group 7-30/Exuma trajectory
0300-EX-ST-2024  Mission 2110 Starlink Group 8-5/Exuma trajectory

ASDS position:
North  24  29  51   West  76  25  36

[spacenuance]

NGA Rocket Launching notice that appears to be for this launch (Starlink Group 6-45).

Map from the NGA notice. This appears to be the first Exuma booster recovery, ASDS 613km downrange. A booster dogleg is implied by the areas, so the payload may be less than 23 satellites.

Looks like 53° inclination. So the first of these missions?

Five Starlinks from Florida using the new landing area...

0293-EX-ST-2024  Mission 2210 Starlink Group 7-28/Exuma trajectory
0294-EX-ST-2024  Mission 2211 Starlink Group 7-29/Exuma trajectory
0295-EX-ST-2024  Mission 2109 Starlink Group 8-4/Exuma trajectory
0296-EX-ST-2024  Mission 2212 Starlink Group 7-30/Exuma trajectory
0300-EX-ST-2024  Mission 2110 Starlink Group 8-5/Exuma trajectory

ASDS position:
North  24  29  51   West  76  25  36

NXSF has 7-25 instead of 6-45 for these notices. https://nextspaceflight.com/launches/details/7531

[Ken the Bin]

NGA Space Debris notices (the same notice for two different Navigational Areas). The time between the start of the Rocket Launching hazard period and the start of the Space Debris hazard period is longer than usual. Am I missing something?

242150Z MAR 24
HYDROPAC 970/24(57,61,71).
SOUTHERN INDIAN OCEAN.
DNC 01, DNC 02, DNC 03.
1. HAZARDOUS OPERATIONS, SPACE DEBRIS
   0058Z TO 0427Z DAILY 30 MAR THRU 07 APR
   IN AREA BOUND BY
   08-53.00S 092-28.00E, 07-46.00S 089-27.00E,
   30-12.00S 061-09.00E, 40-45.00S 002-21.00W,
   42-56.00S 002-24.00W, 32-16.00S 063-10.00E.
2. CANCEL THIS MSG 070527Z APR 24.

242150Z MAR 24
HYDROLANT 620/24(57,61,71).
SOUTHERN INDIAN OCEAN.
DNC 01, DNC 02, DNC 03.
1. HAZARDOUS OPERATIONS, SPACE DEBRIS
   0058Z TO 0427Z DAILY 30 MAR THRU 07 APR
   IN AREA BOUND BY
   08-53.00S 092-28.00E, 07-46.00S 089-27.00E,
   30-12.00S 061-09.00E, 40-45.00S 002-21.00W,
   42-56.00S 002-24.00W, 32-16.00S 063-10.00E.
2. CANCEL THIS MSG 070527Z APR 24.

[zubenelgenubi]

Cross-posts:

Five Starlinks from Florida using the new landing area...
0293-EX-ST-2024  Mission 2210 Starlink Group 7-28/Exuma trajectory
[Launch NET Mar 16]
<snip>
ASDS position:
North  24  29  51   West  76  25  36

https://nextspaceflight.com/launches/details/7507

Starlink Group 7-28
Launch Time
NET March 2024
...
SLC-40 or LC-39A, Florida, USA

Ben Cooper's Launch Photography Viewing Guide; updated March 23; my bold:

The next SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch a Starlink batch from pad 39A on March 23 at 7:39-11:29 p.m. EDT. A Falcon 9 will launch a Starlink batch from pad 40 on March 25 at 5:00-9:00 p.m. EDT. A Falcon 9 will launch a Starlink batch from pad 40. A Falcon 9 will launch the Eutelsat 36D television satellite from pad 39A on March 30 around 6 p.m. EDT. A Falcon 9 will launch the Bandwagon-1 rideshare mission on April at 1:24 p.m. EDT. Upcoming launches include more Starlink batches.

NGA Rocket Launching notice that appears to be for this launch (Starlink Group 6-45).

210012Z MAR 24
NAVAREA IV 338/24(11,26).
WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC.
FLORIDA.
1. HAZARDOUS OPERATIONS, ROCKET LAUNCHING
   292100Z TO 300125Z MAR, ALTERNATE
   2100Z TO 0125Z DAILY 30 MAR THRU 04 APR
   IN AREAS BOUND BY:
   A. 28-39.00N 080-37.69W, 28-39.00N 080-28.00W,
      28-28.00N 080-10.00W, 28-20.00N 080-15.00W,
      28-29.16N 080-32.40W.
   B. 24-55.00N 076-51.00W, 24-57.00N 076-45.00W,
      24-20.00N 076-03.00W, 24-13.00N 075-42.00W,
      24-09.00N 075-37.00W, 24-06.00N 075-34.00W,
      24-00.00N 075-30.00W, 23-53.00N 075-28.00W,
      23-36.00N 075-33.00W, 23-35.00N 075-35.00W,
      23-49.00N 076-04.00W, 24-14.00N 076-19.00W.
2. CANCEL THIS MSG 050225Z APR 24.

NGA Rocket Launching notice that appears to be for this launch (Starlink Group 6-45).

Map from the NGA notice. This appears to be the first Exuma booster recovery, ASDS 613km downrange. A booster dogleg is implied by the areas, so the payload may be less than 23 satellites.

Launch cannot be Starlink Group 6.  It must be Group 7 or Group 8, to 53 degrees orbital inclination.

As the first three Group 8 launches are scheduled from Vandenberg SFB, I think this launch will be Starlink 7-28, with the earlier launch NET date.  Starlink 7-25 has the lower numerical designation, but launch NET is April 8.

Also, Starshield satellite launches cannot be precluded.

[Ken the Bin]

A cancel-and-replace NGA Rocket Launching notice, postponing whatever launch this actually is out to April 5.

Note that these different notices being posted in this topic are not necessarily all for the same mission.
Edit: "This topic" is 6-45, where I originally posted this.

Note: I'm going to post this in the 7-25 topic also.

251703Z MAR 24
NAVAREA IV 345/24(11,26).
WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC.
FLORIDA.
1. HAZARDOUS OPERATIONS, ROCKET LAUNCHING
   052100Z TO 060125Z APR, ALTERNATE
   2100Z TO 0125Z DAILY 06 THRU 12 APR
   IN AREAS BOUND BY:
   A. 28-39.00N 080-37.69W, 28-39.00N 080-28.00W,
      28-28.00N 080-10.00W, 28-20.00N 080-15.00W,
      28-29.16N 080-32.40W.
   B. 24-55.00N 076-51.00W, 24-57.00N 076-45.00W,
      24-20.00N 076-03.00W, 24-13.00N 075-42.00W,
      24-09.00N 075-37.00W, 24-06.00N 075-34.00W,
      24-00.00N 075-30.00W, 23-53.00N 075-28.00W,
      23-36.00N 075-33.00W, 23-35.00N 075-35.00W,
      23-49.00N 076-04.00W, 24-14.00N 076-19.00W.
2. CANCEL NAVAREA IV 338/24.
3. CANCEL THIS MSG 130225Z APR 24.

[zubenelgenubi: Thread and splinter thread merged.]

[zubenelgenubi]

Ben Cooper's Launch Photography Viewing Guide; updated March 26 UTC; my bold:

The next SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the Eutelsat 36D television satellite from pad 39A on March 30 at 5:52 p.m. EDT. A Falcon 9 will launch a Starlink batch from pad 40 on March 30 between 6-10 p.m. EDT. Upcoming launches include more Starlink batches. A Falcon 9 will launch the Bandwagon-1 rideshare mission on April at 1:24 p.m. EDT.

[zubenelgenubi]

NXSF has 7-25 instead of 6-45 for these notices. https://nextspaceflight.com/launches/details/7531

It's since been changed to Starlink 7-28.

[GewoonLukas_]

NXSF has 7-25 instead of 6-45 for these notices. https://nextspaceflight.com/launches/details/7531

It's since been changed to Starlink 7-28.

Confirmed by this NOTAM:

A1078/24 NOTAMN
Q) FAJO/QWMLW/IV/BO/W/000/999/5146S01148E999
A) FAJO B) 2404052243 C) 2404120316
D) DLY 2243-0316
E) AREA BOUNDED BY (5104S 01000W, 4832S 03227E, 5049S 03144E, 5323S
01000W): SPACEX STARLINK 7-28 ROCKET RE-ENTRY OPS TAKING PLACE.
APPLICABLE AIRSPACE DOWNGRADED TO CLASS G.
F) GND G) UNL

[OneSpeed]

Confirmed by this NOTAM: ...

As is the 53° orbital inclination.

[rsmath]

Too early to know how this changes the CONUS crossing path near the end of the first orbit?  I wonder if I'll get a better pass and deorbit burn view from this 53 deg inclination orbit compared to what I see in 43 deg inclination orbit missions.

[Ron Lee]

Too early to know how this changes the CONUS crossing path near the end of the first orbit?  I wonder if I'll get a better pass and deorbit burn view from this 53 deg inclination orbit compared to what I see in 43 deg inclination orbit missions.

My guess is that it will move the path across the US a bit eastward....more at higher latitudes.   I have seen one event from Colorado Springs and it was very bright on a 15 degree elevation path in the southwest during twilight.

I just compared the 43 degree orbit with the 53 degree questimate orbit.

The 43 degree orbit for me has it rising around azimuth 278 degrees and a maximum elevation of 15 degrees at azimuth 210 degrees.

I changed the inclination in that element set to 53 and the first orbit for me now rises at azimuth 312 degrees with a maximum elevation of 79 degrees around azimuth 43 degrees.

If I did not make a mistake that will be a great pass.  Update:  I did make a mistake.  I did not adjust the Right Ascension of the Ascending Node value.  Probably best to just wait for Dr Kelso's elsets and we can determine the hopeful improvement then.

[Ken the Bin]

Now the NGA email system is working again, I've received this NGA cancellation notice, canceling the Rocket Launching notice TBD.

271543Z MAR 24
NAVAREA IV 355/24(11,26).
WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC.
FLORIDA.
CANCEL NAVAREA IV 345/24 AND THIS MSG,
OPERATIONS/EXERCISES POSTPONED.

[zubenelgenubi]

Cross-post; already superseded:

Ben Cooper's Launch Photography Viewing Guide; updated March 27; my bold:

March 28 at 1:40 p.m. EDT: The final United Launch Alliance Delta IV-Heavy rocket, and the last Delta after 64 years and 389 launches, will launch NROL-70 into orbit for the National Reconnaissance Office.

The next SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the Eutelsat 36D television satellite from pad 39A on March 30 at 5:52-8:00 p.m. EDT. A Falcon 9 will launch a Starlink batch from pad 40 on March 30 earliest at 6-10 p.m. EDT. A Falcon 9 will launch a Starlink batch from pad 40 on April 5 around 5-9 p.m. EDT. Upcoming launches include more Starlink batches. A Falcon 9 will launch the Bandwagon-1 rideshare mission on  April at 1:24 p.m. EDT.

The next United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket will launch Boeing's Starliner spacecaraft on its first crewed astronaut mission to the ISS on May 1 at 12:55 a.m. EDT. The launch time gets ~22-26 minutes earlier each day. The next Vulcan rocket, flying on its second mission, will launch Sierra Space's Dreamchaser space plane to the ISS on its first ever mission.

[zubenelgenubi]

Ben Cooper's Launch Photography Viewing Guide; updated March 28 before NROL-70 launch; my bold:

The next SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the Eutelsat 36D television satellite from pad 39A on March 30 at 5:52-8:00 p.m. EDT. A Falcon 9 will launch a Starlink batch from pad 40 on March 30 earliest at 6-10 p.m. EDT. A Falcon 9 will launch a Starlink batch from pad 40 on April 5 around 5-9 p.m. EDT. Upcoming launches include more Starlink batches. A Falcon 9 will launch the Bandwagon-1 rideshare mission on  April 7.

Is this back to the April 5 launch?
If so, = 5 April ~21:00 to 6 April ~01:00

Or, is Ben carrying a missed edit forward?

[Ken the Bin]

Ben Cooper's Launch Photography Viewing Guide; updated March 28 before NROL-70 launch; my bold:

The next SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the Eutelsat 36D television satellite from pad 39A on March 30 at 5:52-8:00 p.m. EDT. A Falcon 9 will launch a Starlink batch from pad 40 on March 30 earliest at 6-10 p.m. EDT. A Falcon 9 will launch a Starlink batch from pad 40 on April 5 around 5-9 p.m. EDT. Upcoming launches include more Starlink batches. A Falcon 9 will launch the Bandwagon-1 rideshare mission on  April 7.

Is this back to the April 5 launch?
If so, = 5 April ~21:00 to 6 April ~01:00

Or, is it carrying a missed edit forward?

The NGA website has been updated this morning. I checked the NAVAREA IV active notices for all Rocket Launching notices. What they have matches the NAVAREA IV emails that I'm holding, which are NAVAREA IV 333/24 for March 28 (NROL-70), NAVAREA IV 350/24 for March 30 (Eutelsat 36D), and NAVAREA IV 351/24 for March 31 (Starlink Group 6-45).

[zubenelgenubi]

Starlink 6-47:

NET April 5th UTC:

A1112/24 NOTAMN
Q) FAJO/QWMLW/IV/BO/W/000/999/3656S04611E999
A) FAJO B) 2404050844 C) 2404111027
D) 05 APR 0804-1258, 06 APR 0739-1233, 07 APR 0714-1208, 08 APR
0648-1142, 09 APR 0623-1117, 10 APR 0558-1052, 11 APR 0533-1027
E) AREA BOUNDED BY (4256S 00224W, 4045S 00221W, 3210S 05700E, 3515S
05700E): SPACEX STARLINK 6-47 ROCKET RE-ENTRY OPS TAKING PLACE.
APPLICABLE AIRSPACE DOWNGRADED TO CLASS G.
F) GND G) UNL

Starlink 7-28 would indeed become launch NET April, NET after both Starlink 6-47 and Bandwagon-1.  Launch could be from either LC-39A or SLC-40.

If this is the next Florida Falcon 9 launch after Starlink 6-47 and Bandwagon-1, then launch may be as soon as possible after Starlink 6-47 from SLC-40.  One ASDS catches for Starlink 6-47, and the other catches for this launch.

Ben Cooper's Launch Photography Viewing Guide; updated March 29; my bold:

The next SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the Eutelsat 36D television satellite from pad 39A on March 30 at 5:52-8:00 p.m. EDT. A Falcon 9 will launch a Starlink batch from pad 40 on March 30 or 31 at 6-10 p.m. EDT. A Falcon 9 will launch a Starlink batch from pad 40 on April 5 around 5-9 p.m. EDT. Upcoming launches include more Starlink batches. A Falcon 9 will launch the Bandwagon-1 rideshare mission on April 7 in the evening EDT. The first stage will land back at the Cape about eight minutes after launch.

Extrapolating from the launch time on April 3, 17:24 UTC, forward four days, launch time would be circa 16:00 UTC = ~12:00 noon EDT.

NextSpaceflight (Updated March 28th) has 23:02 as the launch time:
https://nextspaceflight.com/launches/details/7237

And, launch from LC-39A, and confirming first stage landing at LZ-1.

[zubenelgenubi]

Ben Cooper's Launch Photography Viewing Guide; updated after the two Falcon 9 launches on March 30/31 UTC; my bold:

The next SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch a Starlink batch from pad 40 on April 5 around 2-6 a.m. EDT. A Falcon 9 will launch the Bandwagon-1 rideshare mission on April 7 at 7:17 p.m. EDT. The first stage will land back at the Cape about eight minutes after launch. Upcoming launches include more Starlink batches.

Ben Cooper's Launch Photography Viewing Guide; updated later March 31 UTC; my bold:

The next SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch a Starlink batch from pad 40 on April 5 around 2:15-6:15 a.m. EDT. A Falcon 9 will launch the Bandwagon-1 rideshare mission on April 7 at 7:17 p.m. EDT. The first stage will land back at the Cape about eight minutes after launch. Upcoming launches include more Starlink batches. A Falcon 9 will launch two Galileo navigation system satellites for Europe on late April.

[zubenelgenubi]

This launch now after (at minimum) Starlink 6-48 NET late in the day April 9 UTC.

So, Starlink 7-28 now would launch NET mid April from either Florida Falcon 9 pad.

NET late April 9 UTC per these 2nd stage re-entry NOTAMs:

F1252/24 NOTAMN
Q) YMMM/QWMLW/IV/BO/W/000/999/1526S08311E705
A) YMMM
B) 2404100004 C) 2404160227
D) 2404100004 TO 2404100458
   2404102339 TO 2404110433
   2404112314 TO 2404120408
   2404122249 TO 2404130343
   2404132223 TO 2404140317
   2404142158 TO 2404150252
   2404152133 TO 2404160227
E) ROCKET LAUNCH WILL TAKE PLACE
FLW RECEIVED FROM GOVERNMENT OF UNITED STATES OF AMERICA:
HAZARDOUS OPS WILL BE CONDUCTED FOR ATMOSPHERIC RE-ENTRY AND
SPLASHDOWN OF LAUNCH VEHICLE STARLINK 6-48   
WI THE FOLLOWING AREAS:
2033S 07500E
0746S 08927E
0853S 09228E
2422S 07500E TO BEGINNING
PRIMARY LAUNCH 240410
BACKUP AS PER FIELD D
F) SFC G) UNL


A1148/24 NOTAMN
Q) FAJO/QWMLW/IV/BO/W/000/999/4206S02503E999
A) FAJO B) 2404100004 C) 2404160227
D) 10 APR 0004-0458, 10-11 APR 2339-0443, 11-12 APR 2314-0408, 12-13
APR 2249-0343, 13-14 APR 2223-0317, 14-15 APR 2158-0252, 15-16 APR
2133-0227
E) AREA BOUNDED BY (4256S 00224W, 4045S 00221W, 3210S 05700E, 3515S
05700E): SPACEX STARLINK 6-48 ROCKET RE-ENTRY OPS TAKING PLACE.
APPLICABLE AIRSPACE DOWNGRADED TO CLASS G.
F) SFC G) UNL