SpaceX Launches 27 Starlink Satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base

VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, California — SpaceX successfully launched 27 Starlink satellites on December 1, 2025, from Vandenberg Space Force Base. The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at 9:28 p.m. PST (12:28 a.m. EST / 0528 UTC), adding to the company’s low Earth orbit constellation.

This mission, named Starlink 15-10, marked the final launch of the year for SpaceX. With this deployment, the company has launched over 2,800 Starlink satellites in 2025, expanding broadband internet access worldwide, especially in underserved regions.

The Falcon 9 rocket’s first stage booster, tail number B1081, completed its 20th flight, which includes previous missions like NASA’s Crew-7 and CRS-29. Approximately 8.5 minutes after liftoff, B1081 successfully landed on the drone ship ‘Of Course I Still Love You’. This landing was the 166th for this vessel and the 542nd overall for SpaceX boosters.

SpaceX aims to continue its launch cadence in 2025, with plans for four additional Falcon 9 launches from Florida’s Space Coast by the end of January. These will include three missions focused on the Starlink network and a crucial in-flight abort test for the Crew Dragon spacecraft.

On the same night as the Starlink launch, NASA’s Lunar Flashlight spacecraft encountered a propulsion issue, preventing it from completing its mission to search for water ice deposits at the lunar south pole.

Chris Williams, a NASA astronaut who launched with Russian cosmonauts aboard Soyuz MS-28 on Thanksgiving Day, is also preparing for an eight-month stay at the International Space Station. Williams has expressed excitement about applying his training and contributing to scientific research in space.