SpaceX launches 13 US military satellites to low-Earth orbit
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The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 7:25 AM local time (14:25 GMT).
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The SpaceX headquarters is seen, May 25, 2012, in Hawthorne, California. (AP)
SpaceX announced on Saturday that it had launched 13 military satellites into space on a Falcon 9 rocket. The satellites will be used to track missile launches and provide global military communications.
The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 7:25 AM local time (14:25 GMT).
Falcon 9’s first stage has landed on Landing Zone 4 pic.twitter.com/29ynnJnW4y
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 2, 2023
The satellites will be part of the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA) program, which is a constellation of satellites in low-Earth orbit.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk stated that the company had already launched 61 Falcon rocket missions in 2023.
He further said that if the upcoming mission scheduled for September 3 is successful, SpaceX will surpass its launch count from last year.
Falcon 9 launches @SemperCitiusSDA’s second Tranche 0 mission and the first stage returns to Earth, completing SpaceX’s 61st mission of 2023 and matching our total number of launches last year pic.twitter.com/VHFamcuIpH
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 2, 2023
SpaceX delayed the launch of its Falcon 9 rocket twice due to unfavorable weather conditions that could have affected the recovery operations in the Pacific Ocean.
Read more: Space X's Falcon 9 launch delayed due to Hurricane Hilary intensity
The internet provider was launched in May 2019 with the first 60 satellites put into orbit aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.
In the first weeks that followed the start of the Ukraine conflict, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk offered to provide the service to Ukrainians for free.
In November 2022, 1300 SpaceX satellite units of the military went offline, raising concerns within Ukrainian forces as outages were reported near the frontlines, where it was believed then that Russia was able to shut them down using an unspecified electronic weapon.
On November 14, 2022, SpaceX's founder Elon Musk said he could no longer provide the services due to a shortage of funds and asked the Pentagon to cover the costs.
SpaceX highlighted its financial issues and urged the government to begin funding Starlink services for Ukraine in a letter sent to the Pentagon last month, stating it will cost more than $120 million for the remainder of 2022 and $400 million over the next year.
A day later, Musk said he would continue to fund Starlink in Ukraine for free despite that other contractors receive government funding to manufacture military equipment for Ukraine.
"The hell with it," Musk wrote on Twitter, saying that he will continue to fund the internet for the Ukraine government for free.
In February 2023, SpaceX accused Ukraine of breaking the agreement between the two parties and using Starlink for “offensive purposes".
On July 31, Sputnik reported that Russian electronic warfare began to disrupt the Starlink satellite internet signal in the Lugansk direction.
"An analysis of transmissions between Ukrainian militants at the line of contact has shown that they experience difficulties with internet access via Starlink satellites. Many believe it is due to Russian armed forces having started to jam the signal provided by SpaceX company," Andrei Marochko, a retired army officer of the Lugansk People's Republic (LPR) and a military expert told Sputnik.
Read more: Elon Musk denied Starlink access to Ukraine for Crimea attack
