Launch Roundup: SpaceX continues toward 100 launch goal

As SpaceX continues toward its goal of launching 100 times in 2023, the company is planning to launch three Starlink missions this week — two from Space Launch Complex (SLC) 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) in Florida and the third from SLC-4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB) in California. Launching from Launch Complex 39A on Sunday, Falcon Heavy will place the USSF-52 mission into a currently unknown orbit.

Later in the week, Landpsace will launch its third ZhuQue-2 vehicle from site 96, in the Jiuquan launch center. Additionally, China is expected to launch a currently unknown payload atop the Chang Zheng 2D rocket from LC-3 at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center.

These launches will mark the 199th through 204th orbital launches of 2023 — significantly above 2022’s record of 174 orbital launches, despite several weeks left in the year.

Falcon 9 Block 5 | Starlink Group 6-33

SpaceX’s 92nd launch of 2023 will take place on Wednesday, Dec. 6 at 11:01 PM EST (04:01 UTC on Dec. 7), when a Falcon 9 will launch 23 Starlink v2 Mini satellites into a low-Earth orbit. The mission, dubbed Starlink Group 6-33, will take off from SLC-40 at CCSFS and mark SpaceX’s 125th operational Starlink mission.

Throughout these operational missions and the ride-share missions that have deployed test satellites, SpaceX has deployed a total of 5,536 Starlink satellites ahead of the mission. Of these, 372 have reentered Earth’s atmosphere, and 4,530 are in their operational orbits. All other satellites are currently in the checkout phase or in ascent/descent phases.

On Dec. 5, the Space Launch Delta 45’s weather squadron released a launch mission execution forecast noting the weather as 95% go for launch. The primary concern is liftoff winds, and upper-level wind shear is expected to be low-to-moderate. In the event of a delay, a launch window is set to open 24 hours later, with the weather remaining at 95% go.

The booster supporting this mission is B1077-9. As the name implies, the booster has supported eight previous missions: Crew-5, GPS III Space Vehicle 06, Inmarsat I-6, Starlink Group 5-10, CRS-28, Galaxy 37, Starlink Group 6-13, and Starlink Group 6-25. This booster has the fourth-quickest average turnaround time at 53.44 days, just behind B1076, B1075, and B1080.

Following liftoff, B1077 will burn its nine Merlin 1D engines for two minutes and 26 seconds before shutting down and separating from the second stage. The booster will then perform a one-three-one entry burn (the center engine starts, followed shortly after by two side engines, before going back to the single center engine) to slow down the booster ahead of entry. Later, the first stage will perform a single-engine landing burn, landing on Just Read the Instructions, which was tugged downrange by Crosby Skipper. If successful, this will mark SpaceX’s 252nd total and 178th consecutive landing.

As usual, once the second stage separates, it will burn for approximately six minutes, during which the two payload fairings will be deployed. Both fairing halves will be recovered downrange by SpaceX’s multi-purpose recovery vessel Bob, which will also provide drone ship support. After second engine cut-off one (SECO-1), the stage will coast for approximately 45 minutes. Then, it will ignite the single MVac engine for under two seconds, circularizing the orbit. The stage will then coast for another 10 minutes before deploying the payload at T+1:05:19.

As the name implies, this launch will place the 23 Starlink satellites into Starlink shell six — a 530-kilometer circular orbit, inclined 43.00 degrees.

On Dec. 4, SpaceX’s vice president of launch, Kiko Dontchev, posted on X that “100 [launches] is very much on the table, but it will take excellent execution, relentless focus on safety and reliability, and a little luck with the weather!” SpaceX’s remaining missions in 2023 include USSF-52, Ovzon-3, and several additional Starlink missions.

Falcon 9 Block 5 | Starlink Group 7-8

On Friday, Dec. 8, at 00:00 PST (08:00 UTC), SpaceX will launch the Starlink Group 7-8 mission from SLC-4E at the VSFB in California. This mission will take 22 Starlink v2 Mini satellites into an initial orbit, which will then rise into Starlink shell seven: a 530 km circular orbit inclined 53.00 degrees.

The booster supporting this mission is currently unknown and will attempt to land downrange on SpaceX’s drone ship Of Course I Still Love You. This drone ship has seen the most landings of any drone ship (with this mission being its 77th landing) and is the only drone ship on the West Coast.

ZhuQue-2 | Flight 3

On Friday, Dec. 8 at 23:40 UTC, Landspace is expected to launch the ZhuQue-2 rocket for the third time. Lifting off from Site 96, at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, in China, this mission will place a currently unknown payload into orbit.

After being the first successful methane rocket to reach space and place a payload in orbit, Landspace plans to expand this lead on this flight.

Chang Zheng 2D | Unknown Payload

China is expected to launch an unknown payload atop a Chang Zheng 2D rocket on Sunday, Dec. 9, at 01:58 UTC. The rocket will lift off from LC-3 at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in China and will mark the vehicle’s 13th mission of 2023.

Falcon Heavy | USSF-52

On Sunday, Falcon Heavy will launch at 7:01 PM EST (00:01 UTC on Dec. 11) placing the X-37B spacecraft into a currently unknown orbit. Launching from historic LC-39A, at the Kennedy Space Center, this launch will mark SpaceX’s fifth Falcon Heavy launch of 2023 and ninth overall.

The payload is the United States Space Force’s X-37B space plane. While little is known about this spacecraft, aboard this mission is NASA’s Seeds-2 mission: a mission that will investigate the long-term effects of radiation on plant seeds. The X-37B flying is the second vehicle on its fourth flight. Following its time on-orbit, it will land at a runway back on Earth.

Supporting this mission are B1064-5 (minus Y), B1065-5 (positive Y), and B1084 (center). Both side cores will perform return-to-launch-site landings, with the center core being expended. Both fairings will be recovered with a currently unknown recovery vessel.

Falcon 9 Block 5 | Starlink Group 6-34

Ending the week off, SpaceX will launch another batch of 23 Starlink v2 Mini satellites into low-Earth orbit atop a Falcon 9 Block 5. Liftoff is currently scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 10 at 11:00 PM EST (04:00 UTC on Dec. 11). Just like on Starlink Group 6-33, the satellites will be placed into shell six.

The booster for this mission is currently unknown and will land on Just Read the Instructions. Doug is expected to provide drone ship support and recover both payload fairings.