SpaceX Plans Starlink Launch Amid Weather Challenges

Cape Canaveral, Florida — SpaceX plans to launch its Starlink 12-19 mission early Tuesday, aiming for liftoff at 12:43 a.m. EDT (0443 UTC). This comes after a launch attempt was scrubbed early Monday morning due to preparation delays.

The launch will take place from Space Launch Complex 40, and Spaceflight Now will provide live coverage beginning around 11:43 p.m. EDT.

The 45th Weather Squadron issued an updated forecast ahead of the launch, predicting a 65 percent chance of favorable weather conditions. “A frontal boundary will linger across Northeast Florida, bringing deteriorating weather,” meteorologists noted. They cautioned about potential cumulus clouds, surface electric fields, and anvil clouds during the window.

Additionally, lingering effects from a coronal mass ejection (CME) that occurred on Friday are influencing conditions around the Earth. The NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center in Boulder, Colorado, reported that this phenomenon has resulted in a ‘G3 Strong’ geomagnetic storm, which could affect satellite operations.

While weather monitoring continues, it appears the cause for the previous scrub was not directly related to environmental conditions. If successful, this will mark the 21st flight of Falcon 9 booster B1071, which has previously launched several significant missions, including NASA’s Crew-5.

SpaceX aims to land booster B1071 on the droneship ‘Just Read the Instructions‘ after liftoff, seeking to achieve its 123rd landing. The mission includes 23 Starlink satellites, 13 of which have direct-to-cell capabilities, expanding SpaceX’s fleet of 635 such satellites to date.

In a related announcement, a billionaire funding a SpaceX flight for non-professional crew members announced the final two members of the four-person team for a trip to orbit in September. Among them is an artist-educator and an aerospace worker.