Weekly Spaceflight Update: May 31st - June 8th
This week's spaceflight update has plenty to talk about, including launches from both the US and China, Starship coming to Florida, plus Blue Origin’s continued progress on restoring LC-36 to operational status. Read more below.
SpaceSail Polar Group #10 – CASC
On June 1 at 4:40 p.m. Beijing Time, the Long March 12B rocket made its first flight from the Long March 12 series pad at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, China. This launch carried 2 satellites for the SpaceSail constellation.
Photo: sorae (old image)
Starlink Group 17-47 – SpaceX
On June 3 at 8:40 a.m. PDT, SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California carrying a batch of Starlink satellites to orbit. Falcon 9 booster B1088 made its 16th flight and landed on the Of Course I Still Love You droneship in the Pacific Ocean.
Photo: SpaceX
Starlink Group 10-43 – SpaceX
On June 4 at 6:26 a.m. EDT, SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida carrying another batch of Starlink satellites to orbit. Falcon 9 booster B1090 made its 12th flight and landed on the A Shortfall of Gravitas droneship in the Atlantic Ocean.
Photo: Asher B.
SpaceSail Polar Group #11 – CASC
On June 4 at 7:39 p.m. Beijing Time, CASC launched a Long March 6A rocket from LC-9A at Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, China, carrying 18 satellites for the SpaceSail constellation.
Photo: Zheng Taotao (old image)
SpaceSail Polar Group #12 – CASC
On June 5 at 2:34 p.m. Beijing Time, CASC launched another batch of SpaceSail satellites from Commercial LC-1 at Wenchang Space Launch Site, China, aboard a Long March 8 rocket.
Photo: CASC (old image)
Starlink Group 17-43 – SpaceX
On June 6 at 9:24 p.m. PDT, SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base carrying 21 Starlink satellites to orbit along with 2 Starshield satellites for the US government. Falcon 9 booster B1097 made its 10th flight and landed on the Of Course I Still Love You droneship in the Pacific Ocean.
Photo: Frank M.
Starlink Group 10-35 – SpaceX
On June 8 at 6:13 a.m. EDT, SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral carrying another batch of Starlink satellites to orbit. Falcon 9 booster B1067 made a record-breaking 35th flight to space and successfully landed on the A Shortfall of Gravitas droneship. This booster’s flight history includes two CRS missions to the International Space Station, two crewed missions, seven commercial satellite missions, and 24 Starlink missions. This booster has proven to be SpaceX’s star booster. Further proven by its crown decal on its side.
Photo: Gavin R.
Starship transport barge arrives in Cape Canaveral
Shortly after the Starlink launch on the 8th, SpaceX’s Starship transport barge Marmac 31 (better known as You’ll Thank Me Later) arrived in Port Canaveral carrying the first Starship hardware delivered from Starbase. Earlier in the week, while at Starbase, both a ship transport stand and a booster stand were seen moving from the Starbase production site to the Port of Brownsville, where they were loaded onto the barge. This arrival signals the continued ramp-up of Starship operations at KSC, with a first launch from Florida now in sight.
Photo: Gavin R.
Blue Origin continues work on damaged LC-36
Continued progress was seen at Blue Origin’s LC-36 following the explosive anomaly roughly a week earlier involving their New Glenn rocket during pre-launch testing. In preparation for renovations and rebuilding of the pad, Blue Origin was seen rolling out their fleet of GS2 second stages and the first stage booster, “Never Tell Me The Odds,” to the production facility on Merritt Island. The booster transport was captured by Launch Heaven photographers Gavin R. and Asher B. during its trip back to the factory. It appears untouched by the anomaly and will hopefully fly again for a third time on a future mission.
Photo: Gavin R.
