Update 12:39 p.m. EST (1739 UTC): SpaceX updated the T-0 launch time.
SpaceX is preparing to send its latest batch of Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit Monday afternoon. Among the 21 V2 Mini satellites are 13 that feature Direct to Cell capabilities.
Liftoff of the Falcon 9 rocket on the Starlink 12-7 mission from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station is set for 5:05 p.m. EST (2205 UTC).
Spaceflight Now will have live coverage beginning about an hour prior to liftoff.
The 45th Weather Squadron forecast a pretty idyllic outlook for the launch window, predicting a 95 percent chance of favorable weather at liftoff. It cited “a small chance of a Cumulus Cloud Rule violation.”
The Falcon 9 first stage booster being used on this mission, tail number B1076 in the SpaceX fleet, will launch for a 20th time. It’s previous flights included CRS-26, Intelsat IS-40e and 10 Starlink missions.
A little more than eight minutes after liftoff, it will target a landing on the SpaceX droneship, ‘A Shortfall of Gravitas.’ If successful, it will be the 96th landing on ASOG and the 402nd booster landing to date.
SpaceX is hoping to start 2025 with a high launch tempo, even with its workhorse pad, Space Launch Complex 40, being out of the loop since Jan. 13. Starlink 12-7 will the company’s 12th launch of the month and it has as many as three more on the manifest before the end of January:
- Jan. 29 – SpainSat NG-1
- Jan. 30 – Starlink 12-3
- Jan. 30 – Starlink 11-4
Comparing this to previous years, SpaceX launched 10 times in January 2024 and seven times in January 2023. Its most voluminous launch month last year was November, during which it launched 16 times.
All told, SpaceX launched 134 orbital missions in 2024, including two Falcon Heavy flights. According to a graph published in its 2024 Progress Report, SpaceX suggests it is aiming for somewhere between 160 and 180 launches in 2025 between its Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets. That would necessitate a launch rate of between about 13 to 15 launches per month throughout the year.
