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UPDATE: The launch did not liftoff Saturday. SpaceX is now targeting Sunday morning starting at 5:11 a.m. for liftoff. The launch window is 83 minutes. ORIGINAL STORY: SpaceX is planning an early morning launch Saturday for one of its Falcon 9 rockets out of Vandenberg Space Force Base, the company announced Friday.

The 83-minute launch window opens at 5:11 a.m. on Saturday, December 23.

The first stage of the Falcon 9 rocket will return to Earth and land at Vandenberg Space Force Base, meaning many residents across the region may hear a sonic boom.

If the launch is scrubbed, a backup opportunity will be on Sunday, December 24 with the same launch window.

The launch is part of the SARah-2 mission to low-Earth orbit. SARah 2 is a passive reflector antenna radar satellite built by OHB-System, according to Next Space Flight.

The satellite is part of a three-satellite constellation being built for the German government, the website said.

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UPDATE: SpaceX planning early morning launch Sunday with sonic boom to follow - KSBY News

SpaceX has broken its rocket-reuse record yet again.

A Falcon 9 rocket launched 23 of SpaceX's Starlink internet satellites to orbit from Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Saturday (Dec. 23) at 12:33 a.m. EST (0533 GMT).

It was the 19th liftoff for this particular Falcon 9 first stage, according to a SpaceX mission description, setting a new reusability mark for the company.

Related: Starlink satellite train: How to see and track it in the night sky

As planned, the Falcon 9's first stage came back to Earth for the 19th time, landing about 8.5 minutes after it launched on the drone ship Just Read the Instructions, which was stationed in the Atlantic Ocean off the Florida coast.

The Falcon 9's upper stage, meanwhile, continued hauling the 23 Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit (LEO). The spacecraft were set to be deployed there about 65.5 minutes after liftoff.

SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk wants to help humanity colonize Mars and achieve a variety of other ambitious exploration feats. Rocket reusability is a key part of this vision, helping to cut the cost of spaceflight and increase its cadence.

So SpaceX's reuse records don't tend to last long. The previous mark 18 flights for a Falcon 9 booster was set just last month.

SpaceX has launched more than 90 orbital missions so far in 2023. Most of them have been dedicated to building out its Starlink broadband megaconstellation, which currently consists of nearly 5,200 operational satellites.

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SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches Starlink satellites on record-breaking 19th mission - Space.com

WASHINGTON SpaceX ended an 11-day hiatus in launches late Dec. 18 with a successful Starlink mission, but the gap likely means the company will fall just short of its goal of 100 Falcon launches this year.

A Falcon 9 lifted off from Space Launch Complex 49 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 11:01 p.m. Eastern. The rocket deployed its payload of 23 Starlink v2 mini satellites into orbit a little more than an hour later.

The launch was the first for SpaceX since a Falcon 9 launch of another set of Starlink satellites early Dec. 8 from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The gap of almost 11 days between launches is the longest for the company this year. SpaceX has averaged about four days between launches in 2023.

Several factors contributed to the gap in launches. Poor weather conditions in Florida delayed the latest Starlink launch from last week. A Falcon Heavy launch of the Space Forces X-37B spaceplane from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center was scrubbed Dec. 11 because of a ground equipment issue, but has since been delayed to no earlier than Dec. 28, reportedly because of issues with the rocket.

SpaceX had scheduled a Falcon 9 launch from Vandenberg carrying Starlink satellites for Dec. 14, then delayed it a day before pushing it back again to Dec. 28. SpaceX did not disclose the reason for the extended delay, but is believed to free up a launch opportunity for the German SARah 2 and 3 radar imaging satellites as soon as Dec. 21.

The combination of factors means SpaceX will likely fall just short of a goal set earlier this year of 100 Falcon launches. The company has now conducted 92 launches 88 of the Falcon 9 and 4 of the Falcon Heavy so far this year. In addition to the X-37B, Starlink and SARah launches, SpaceX is expected to attempt one more Starlink launch from Florida as well as the launch of the Ovzon-3 communications satellite. All those launches would bring SpaceXs total for the year to 97.

Even before the recent gap, a SpaceX executive said getting to 100 would have been a stretch. 100 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! said Kiko Dontchev, vice president of launch, in a Dec. 4 social media post.

Despite missing the goal, the companys launch cadence has been a significant achievement compared both to its past activity as well as global competitors. SpaceX launches increased by more than 50% from 2022 and are triple what it performed in 2021.

SpaceX accounts for nearly half of the 209 orbital launch attempts so far in 2023, 200 of which were successful. (Those figures do not include two Starship launches in April and November that, even if completely successful, would not have achieved orbit.) Among American companies, SpaceX has performed more the nine times as many launches this year as the second most active company, Rocket Lab, which recently flew its tenth Electron rocket of 2023.

SpaceX expects to continue increasing its launch cadence into 2024. In testimony to a Senate space subcommittee Oct. 18, Bill Gerstenmaier, vice president of build and flight reliability at SpaceX, said the company was planning to conduct 144 launches 12 per month in 2024.

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SpaceX to just miss goal of 100 Falcon launches in 2023 - SpaceNews

The SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft is pictured approaching the space station above the Indian Ocean on March 16, 2023.

Following a weather review, NASA and SpaceX now are targeting no earlier than 5:05 p.m. EST Thursday, Dec. 21, forthe undocking ofthe companys 29th Dragon commercial resupply services missionfrom the International Space Station due to unfavorable weather in the splashdown zones off the coast of Florida.

Coverage of Dragons departure Thursday will begin at 4:45 p.m. on the NASA+ streaming service viathe webor theNASA app. Coverage also will air live on NASA Television,YouTube, and on the agencyswebsite. Learn how tostream NASA TVthrough a variety of platforms including social media.

After re-entering Earths atmosphere, the spacecraft will splash down off the coast of Florida, which will not be broadcast on NASA TV. Follow updates on return plans on the agencysspace stationblog.

NASA and Northrop Grumman continue to target Friday, Dec. 22, for the departure of the Cygnus spacecraft from the orbital complex.

Coverage of Cygnus departure Friday will begin at 7:45 a.m. ahead of the robotic release of the spacecraft at 8:05 a.m. on the NASA+ streaming service viathe webor theNASA app. Coverage also will air live on NASA Television,YouTube, and on the agencyswebsite.

Cygnus will conduct secondary payload operations following unberthing and complete a safe re-entry into the Earths atmosphere where it will burn up harmlessly over the Pacific Ocean.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

Get weekly video highlights at: https://roundupreads.jsc.nasa.gov/videoupdate/

Get the latest from NASA delivered every week. Subscribe here: http://www.nasa.gov/subscribe

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SpaceX Dragon Departure from Space Station Targets Thursday Space Station - NASA Blogs

SpaceX's next private astronaut launch has been delayed until mid-January.

The company had been planning to launch Axiom Space's Ax-3 mission to the International Space Station on Jan. 9. However, the timeline has slipped by a little over a week, to Jan. 17, NASA announced today (Dec. 21).

The delay is "due to recent unfavorable weather conditions and changes in SpaceXs launch manifest," agency officials said today in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter).

The liftoff, atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, will occur from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida and send four people toward the ISS in a Dragon capsule. You'll be able to watch it live here at Space.com when the time comes.

Related: Axiom Space names Ax-3 astronaut crew for SpaceX mission to ISS

As its name indicates, Ax-3 is the third private astronaut mission to the ISS organized by Houston-based company Axiom Space. All of these flights employ SpaceX hardware to send four-person crews to the orbiting lab for roughly two-week-long missions.

The first, Ax-1, launched in April 2022. Ax-2 followed in May of this year.

Ax-3 will be commanded by former NASA astronaut Michael Lpez-Alegra, who now works for Axiom. (NASA requires that all private crewed missions to the ISS be helmed by a former agency astronaut).

Joining Lpez-Alegra will be Italian Air Force Col. Walter Villadei, who flew to suborbital space with Virgin Galactic in June of this year, European Space Agency astronaut Marcus Wandt, and Alper Gezeravc, who will become the first Turkish citizen to reach the final frontier.

Rough weather has delayed a number of SpaceX launches from Florida's Space Coast lately, affecting other missions on the company's manifest such as Ax-3.

For example, SpaceX initially aimed to pull off a Florida launch doubleheader on Dec. 11, lofting a batch of its Starlink internet satellites and the U.S. Space Force's X-37B space plane atop a Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rocket, respectively. But the Starlinks didn't get off the ground until this past Monday (Dec. 18), and the X-37B still hasn't lifted off; it's now scheduled to fly on Dec. 28.

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SpaceX launch of Axiom Space's 3rd private astronaut mission delayed to Jan. 17 - Space.com