SpaceX Launches 24 New Starlink Satellites from Vandenberg

SpaceX successfully deployed 24 additional Starlink broadband satellites into low Earth orbit today (Aug. 18) using a Falcon 9 rocket launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The launch occurred at 12:26 p.m. EDT (1626 GMT), marking the company’s 100th Falcon 9 flight of 2025 and its 103rd mission this year, including three suborbital test flights of the Starship rocket.

Approximately nine minutes after liftoff, the Falcon 9 reached its preliminary orbit and was on track to deploy the satellites about 50 minutes later. The mission also saw the first stage of the Falcon 9, Booster 1088, complete its ninth flight and land safely on the drone ship “Of Course I Still Love You” in the Pacific Ocean.

The first stage of a rocket stands on its four landing legs after landing on a drone ship in the Pacific Ocean — The first stage of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is seen after landing on a drone ship in the Pacific Ocean.

With this deployment, SpaceX’s Starlink constellation now exceeds 8,100 active satellites, providing global coverage. Since 2018, more than 9,400 Starlink satellites have been launched in total, helping deliver high-speed internet worldwide.