Elon Musk’s SpaceX is due to launch another batch of Starlink satellites into orbit as it continues its strong momentum. In recent weeks SpaceX has launched a separate batch of Starlink satellites, as well as a historic launch which saw NASA astronauts blasted towards the International Space Station (ISS) – the first time astronauts had been launched from American soil since 2011. Now the company is gearing up for another launch which will see more Starlink satellites blasted into orbit.
A further 60 satellites will be launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 05:12 EDT (10:12 BST) on Saturday, June 13.
SpaceX will be hosting a live stream of the event, which will be available to watch on THIS page.
It is the ninth of such launches, and will take the number of Starlink satellites in orbit to more than 500.
NASA said: “SpaceX is scheduled to launch 60 Starlink satellites from a Falcon 9.
“This will be the 9th mission in support of the constellation of networked satellites known as Starlink.
“The goal of Starlink is to create a network that will help provide internet services to those who are not yet connected, and to provide reliable and affordable internet across the globe.”
Starlink is SpaceX’s ambitious yet controversial plan to launch 12,000 satellites into Earth’s orbit, with the aim of supplying internet to every corner of the globe.
The first of the 12,000 satellites were launched in May 2019, and month by month Elon Musk’s firm has steadily been increasing its numbers in the skies.
READ MORE: SpaceX launch: Russia’s space chief demands respect
“Although most of these reflections may be so faint that they are hard to pick out with the naked eye, they can be detrimental to the sensitive capabilities of large ground-based astronomical telescopes, including the extreme wide-angle survey telescopes currently under construction.
“Secondly, despite notable efforts to avoid interfering with radio astronomy frequencies, aggregate radio signals emitted from the satellite constellations can still threaten astronomical observations at radio wavelengths.
“Recent advances in radio astronomy, such as producing the first image of a black hole or understanding more about the formation of planetary systems, were only possible through concerted efforts in safeguarding the radio sky from interference.”