A Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at 1:05 a.m. EDT (0505 GMT or 10:05 p.m. PDT on Aug. 13 local) from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base. About nine minutes later, after a nominal ascent, the Starlink Group 17-4 mission reached space.
The Falcon 9's upper stage, powered by single Merlin engine, was on track to reach its planned orbit and deploy the satellites about an hour after it left Earth.
Also to plan, the Falcon's first stage (Booster 1093) completed its fifth flight, landing on the drone ship "Of Course I Still Love You" in the Pacific Ocean. All of the booster's missions have been dedicated to growing SpaceX's megaconstellation.
With this launch, there are now more than 8,100 active Starlink satellites out of the nearly 9,400 launched since 2018, according to tracker Jonathan McDowell.
Thursday morning's launch from California was SpaceX's 98th Falcon 9 mission in 2025 and 516th flight since 2010. It was the 452nd reuse of a Falcon 9 first stage and 487th landing.
Source: www.space.com
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