SpaceX deploys 23 Starlink satellites via Falcon 9 rocket (May 12, 2024)

On May 12, 2024, SpaceX sent a new Falcon 9 mission and deployed 23 Starlink satellites into low-Earth orbit. This mission comes as Starlink experiencing a high load due to the recent solar storm. Falcon 9 for this mission lifted off from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

Elon Musk, SpaceX founder and CEO said last week that Starlink is facing degraded service due to the largest geomagnetic storm from the Sun in two decades.

Starlink covers Earth as the largest satellite constellation in the world. It accounts for around 60 percent of 7,500 satellites orbiting Earth.

The storm inflames the atmosphere and makes it denser. This situation increases density for more drag on orbiting objects, especially low-Earth orbit satellites. The degraded service is a result of higher drag making it difficult for the satellite to maintain its ideal position. Therefore, services could get a major blow in the solar winds.

US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration confirmed that the storm is the biggest since October 2023. It could remain in effect for this week and impact services such as navigation systems, power grids and satellite based navigation, and more.

First Stage:

This was the 15th launch of the first-stage booster which previously supported major missions including SES-22, HAKUTO-R MISSION 1, and more.

After sending the second-stage rocket to the upper atmosphere,  the booster landed on a droneship stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.

(source)