SpaceX is launching 23 Starlink satellites in the first of back-to-back missions this weekend

SpaceX launched 23 Starlink internet satellites from Florida on Saturday (November 18), the first of two Starlink missions planned for this weekend.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 12:05 a.m. EDT (0500 GMT).

Related: Starlink Space Train: How to See and Track It in the Night Sky

The SpaceX Falcon 9 first stage lands on the drone, read only the instructions, in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida on Saturday, November 18, 2023. (Image credit: SpaceX (via X))

The Tche Falcon 9’s first stage returned to Earth for a vertical landing about 8.5 minutes after launch aboard the Just Read the Instructions drone ship, which was stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.

This was the 11th launch and landing of this rocket’s first stage, according to SpaceX Task description.

Meanwhile, the 23 Starlink satellites from the Falcon 9 upper stage will be deployed to low Earth orbit about 65.5 minutes after liftoff.

The launch was the first of two Starlink missions planned for this weekend. SpaceX also aims to launch 22 broadband satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Sunday (Nov. 19) at 1:55 a.m. EDT (0655 GMT; 10:55 p.m. local time Nov. 18 in California).

And there’s other SpaceX action this weekend, too: The company plans to launch the second-ever test flight of its massive Starship rocket on Saturday from its site in South Texas, during a 20-minute window that opens at 8 a.m. EDT (1300 EDT ). GMT). You can watch that highly anticipated flight live here on Space.com when the time comes.