SpaceX launches – A Falcon 9 rocket is set to launch 24 Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base tonight, with live coverage beginning about 10 minutes before liftoff.
Tonight, a Falcon 9 is scheduled to rise from Vandenberg Space Force Base on California’s central coast, aiming to add 24 more Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit.
Liftoff is set for 11:19 p.m. EDT (8:19 p.m. local time) on June 24, with a corresponding time of 0319 GMT on June 25. SpaceX says coverage will begin about 10 minutes before liftoff, giving viewers a front-row seat as the rocket carries the broadband spacecraft into orbit.
If the launch goes as planned, the mission will follow a familiar rhythm for SpaceX: about 8.5 minutes after liftoff, the Falcon 9’s first stage is expected to return to Earth and touch down in the Pacific Ocean on the SpaceX drone ship “Of Course I Still Love You.”
This flight will use a booster known as B1081. In the company’s mission description, it’s listed as the 25th flight for this particular first stage.
After the first stage separation, the rocket’s upper stage will continue pushing the payload toward orbit, with the 24 satellites deployed just under 62 minutes into the flight.
For Starlink, the count keeps climbing. Tonight’s launch is described as the 74th Falcon 9 liftoff of the year and the 59th of 2026 devoted to building out the Starlink megaconstellation. Starlink is already the largest satellite network ever assembled, with nearly 10,700 active units, a number SpaceX has been steadily increasing.
The broader launch cadence this year also includes non–Falcon 9 missions. On April 29, a Falcon Heavy launched the Viasat-3 F3 telecom satellite. And on May 22, the Starship megarocket completed its 12th-ever test flight.
Whether you’re tracking the countdown for the landing at sea or simply watching the next step in the Starlink buildup, tonight’s launch is scheduled to deliver another deployment of 24 satellites—timed precisely, and launched from one of the most important gateways for U.S. space missions.
SpaceX Falcon 9 Starlink Vandenberg Space Force Base B1081 drone ship Of Course I Still Love You broadband satellites low Earth orbit
Why does every rocket launch sound like the same thing now? 24 more like always.
They’re launching at 11:19pm? I swear I read somewhere it was tomorrow. Also the “drone ship” thing sounds sketchy lol.
So it’s 24 satellites but then the article says 25th flight for the booster? That math doesn’t make sense to me. Either way I don’t trust it, SpaceX always messes with timing and then people act surprised.
I don’t even care about Starlink I just wanna know if the booster B1081 is like the “same one” from before or some new one. Also 8.5 minutes landing?? like that’s insanely fast, right? Probably not gonna touch down though bc the Pacific is always rough.