SpaceX has launched 96 Falcon 9 missions so far in 2024, two-thirds of them dedicated to building out the Starlink network. The company has also launched two Falcon Heavy missions and three test flights of its Starship megarocket this year.

SpaceX successfully launched a Falcon 9 rocket carrying a payload of 20 Starlink satellites from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 7:31 p.m. EDT Friday.

The company's effort to deliver gigabit speeds to Starlink users will also harness a wider range of radio spectrum, according to a new FCC filing.

The Space Force's 45th Weather Squadron had only forecast 40% odds of favorable weather, citing liftoff winds and unfavorable booster recovery weather.

Over the past four years, SpaceX has become a globe-straddling internet company as well as a rocket-maker. Its Starlink service uses what would, a few years ago, have been an unthinkably large number of satellites (presently around 6,

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches 23 Starlink satellites from Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida on Friday May 17, 2024. SpaceX on Monday launched another 23 orbitals into low-Earth orbit from the U.S. eastern coast. File Photo by Joe Marino/UPI | License Photo

STOCKHOLM, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Eutelsat (ETL.PA), the world's third-biggest satellite operator by revenue, launched 20 satellites for its communications network on Sunday, using Elon Musk's SpaceX in its first move since the merger of two European companies last year.

SpaceX is scheduled for another rocket launch Friday night. The space company is set to launch its Falcon 9 rocket carrying 20 Starlink satellites at 7:31 p.m. Thirteen of the satellites will be carrying Direct to Cell capabilities.

The liftoff is targeted for 7:31 p.m., but if additional time is needed, Saturday at 7:06 p.m. will be available.