A stormy weather that swept through Florida last week delayed the first launch attempt at the T-1 minute mark due to high ground-level winds, and high seas in the booster recovery zone in the Atlantic Ocean forced further delays.
The 127th operational Starlink mission, Starlink Group 6-34, brings the total number of launched Starlink satellites to 5,604, with more than 5,226 Starlink satellites currently in orbit.
It was the third launch and landing for the first stage booster supporting this mission. It previously supported two previous missions for NASA to the International Space Station, Crew-7 and CRS-29. Eight and a half minutes after liftoff, the booster successfully landed on the drone ship, A Shortfall of Gravitas (ASOG) in the Atlantic Ocean.
This year alone, launch providers from all over the world have sent the most rockets into orbit. Starlink 6-34 marks the 200th successful orbital flight in one calendar year, led by SpaceX and China. SpaceX was responsible for 92 of those launches. Breaking last year's record of 180 global orbital launches reaching orbit.
We may see even greater numbers next year as SpaceX continues to build its Starlink Satellite Constellation, with the goal of launching 12 rockets per month in 2024.
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