SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket Successfully Launches 21 Starlink Satellites Into Orbit

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket successfully launched 21 Starlink satellites into orbit from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base today at 7:25 p.m. local California time.

Six of the satellites boast Direct to Cell (DTC) network technology that leverages existing Starlink infrastructure to enable seamless access to text, voice, and data for LTE phones, thus eliminating deadzones across the globe. Falcon 9’s first stage then returned to Earth for a vertical landing on the “Of Course I Still Love You” droneship, stationed in the Pacific Ocean, around eight minutes after liftoff. This marks the second Starlink launch this week, with the previous one taking place on April 5th from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

Saw it all the way from here in Baja California Sur – just north of Cabo San Lucas – amazing!,” said one person from California.