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A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lived through Wednesday (January 18) breakfast hour with a flawless launch of an advanced GPS satellite into orbit.
Recently, Elon Musk’s company published photos. (will open in a new tab) launch at 7:24 AM EST (1224 GMT) and they are stunning as they show the workhorse climbing into orbit with the rising sun just behind the Atlantic Ocean-facing pad at the Space Force Station at Cape Canaveral in Florida.
Just minutes after the epic footage was taken, the upgraded Falcon 9 first-stage booster landed on an unmanned craft at sea as a GPS III satellite climbed into its transfer orbit for the US Space Force.
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A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches a GPS III rocket on behalf of the US Space Force on Jan. 1. 18, 2023. (Image credit: SpaceX)
A distant view of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launching a GPS III rocket on behalf of the US Space Force in January. 18, 2023. (Image credit: SpaceX)
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches a GPS III rocket on behalf of the US Space Force, January 1. 18, 2023. (Image credit: SpaceX)
As you can see in the full-length launch video below, the Falcon 9’s first stage separated as planned from the upper stage 2 minutes 40 seconds after liftoff from Spaceport 40 at Cape Canveral.
Then, less than nine minutes after launch, the booster returned to Earth for a soft landing on SpaceX’s Lack of Gravity unmanned craft, allowing the rocket to be redesigned for future missions.
The early morning launch was visible across Florida’s Space Coast and caught the attention of several local photographers. Some filmed it with remote cameras at the launch site, while others positioned themselves on observation decks surrounding the launch site to photograph the launch at sunrise.
These are images taken by my remote cameras left on site the day before #GPS ll 6 launch this morning on #SpaceX #Falcon9. 📸: @theresacross_ @SpaceflightIns pic.twitter.com/ehOeCUXPCsJanuary 19, 2023
Golden Sunrise Taking off into space to launch the #SpaceX Space Force Falcon 9 GPS 3 SV06 navigation satellite at 7:24 AM ET recently from pad 40 with VAB on the left. and a flock of birds flutter overhead. @SpaceForceDoD @LockheedMartin. View from Indian River at Max Brewer Bridge pic.twitter.com/zrdY4XmvICJanuary 18, 2023
Another GPS launch from @spacex this morning :) #spacecoast #floridabeaches #cocoabeach @FarryFaz pic.twitter.com/yKdihimR1lJanuary 18, 2023
The launch was SpaceX’s fourth in 2023. Just a day later, the company again went into space from the opposite coast of the United States.
SpaceX sent 51 of its Starlink Internet satellites into orbit Thursday (Jan. 19) at 10:43 AM EST on another Falcon 9 rocket that lifts off from California’s Vandenberg Space Force Base. The first stage culminated in the landing on the debut flight of this booster on another SpaceX unmanned “Of course I still love you” craft.
Elizabeth Howell is co-author of Why Am I Taller? (will open in a new tab)? (ECW Press, 2022; with Canadian astronaut Dave Williams), space medicine book. Follow her on Twitter @howellspace. (will open in a new tab). Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom (will open in a new tab) or facebook (will open in a new tab).