Update: In what may be a first, tonight’s SpaceX launch was scrubbed minutes before liftoff because a cruise ship sailed into the No-go zone. The Coast Guard notified mariners of the launch, but the cruise ship sailed out of Port Canaveral anyway. SpaceX will try again Monday at 6:11pm.
A planned SpaceX launch Thursday evening could bring sonic booms to the region.
SpaceX is launching a surveillance satellite for the Italian Space Agency on its Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Falcon 9 and COSMO-SkyMed Second Generation FM2 are vertical on Space Launch Complex 40. Weather is 60% favorable for tonight’s launch at 6:11 p.m. EST. Webcast will go live ~15 minutes before liftoff → https://t.co/bJFjLCzWdK pic.twitter.com/haZOJj3xje
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) January 27, 2022
Less than 10 minutes after launch, SpaceX plans to land the first stage booster back at Cape Canaveral. It’s return will cause loud sonic booms that could be heard across Central Florida.
Forecasters at Space Force’s Space Launch Delta 45 predict a 60 percent chance of favorable weather and moderate weather risk for booster recovery. The mission’s launch window opens at 6:11 p.m. ET.
SpaceX routinely lands the first stage boosters for reuse, although most of the past landings have been on a barge at sea.
The launch of the Italian satellite is heading on a southward trajectory. The U.S. Space Force is urging boaters and pilots to carefully monitor restricted zones ahead of the launch attempt.
Another Falcon 9 launch is scheduled on Saturday afternoon, launching SpaceX’s Starlink satellites which will join a growing constellation of broadband satellites blanketing the globe. Launch weather is favorable but Space Force forecasters call for high weather risk for booster recovery.
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