SpaceX performs Canaveral launch Saturday, but scrubs 2nd launch from KSC

A Friday scrub of a launch attempt meant for a short while SpaceX was aiming to send up two of its rockets from the Space Coast within three hours of one another on Saturday morning.

The company stood down from the second launch attempt, though, and won’t try to fly until at least Sunday. But the first one lifted off without a hitch.

A Falcon 9 carrying 21 of the company’s Starlink internet satellites took off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40 at 8:50 a.m.

SpaceX had scrubbed the Friday attempt for this mission because of booster recovery weather conditions downrange in the Atlantic.

The first-stage booster made its 21st trip to space having previously launched the Crew-3 and Crew-4 human spaceflight missions, among others. It made another recovery landing downrange in the Atlantic on the droneship Just Read the Instructions.

It’s one of three boosters in SpaceX’s fleet with at least 20 launches on the books. Another booster based at Cape Canaveral is the fleet leader, having already flown 22 times.

This marks the 56th launch among all providers on the Space Coast for 2024, with SpaceX responsible for all but four.

It’s the 77th launch by SpaceX of its Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets from both its Florida and California launch pads. It’s also flown two orbital test missions of its in-development Starship and Super Heavy rocket from Texas with a third awaiting approval to launch from the Federal Aviation Administration.

Now pushed to Sunday, SpaceX has a second Starlink launch slated from neighboring Kennedy Space Center.

That Falcon 9 is now set to lift off with 23 Starlink satellites from KSC’s Launch Pad 39-A targeting targeting 7:21 a.m. Sunday during a four-hour window that runs from 6:59–10:59 a.m.

Space Launch Delta 45’s weather squadron forecasts a 90% chance for good conditions.

Its first-stage booster is making its 17th flight and will attempt a landing on the droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas in the Atlantic.

The original Saturday lineup would have bested SpaceX’s previous record for time between launches from the Space Coast launch pads. They were aiming to fly within two hours and 31 minutes of one another.

That would have been better than SpaceX’s previous record turnaround, which came Dec. 28, 2023, when a Falcon Heavy launch from KSC was followed by a Falcon 9 at Cape Canaveral in two hours and 54 minutes.

SpaceX doesn’t hold the all-time record, though.

The shortest times between launches on the Space Coast came during four Gemini program missions that flew in 1966. Those featured double launches from two different pads on what was then Cape Kennedy.

Those would send crew up in the Gemini capsule on Titan rockets about 100 minutes after Atlas boosters had sent up Agena Target Vehicles with which they would rendezvous in space.

The record remains the two launches from Gemini 11, which sent up astronauts Pete Conrad and Richard Gordon from Launch Complex 19 only 97 minutes and 25 seconds after the Agena launch from Launch Complex 14 just over 1 mile to the south.

2024 Orlando Sentinel. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.