The Falcon 9 rocket is on the launch pad in Florida before the launch of the Transporter-1 mission.
SpaceX
SpaceX launched another rocket to record books on Sunday with the first mission of its “rideshare” program that carried dozens of small satellites into space.
The Falcon 9 rocket, which came out of Cape Canaveral in Florida, carried 143 spacecraft in orbit, a new world record for the largest number of spacecraft launched at once and surpassing the 104 mark set by an Indian PSLV rocket in February 2017.
Named Transporter-1, the SpaceX mission was the first in the company’s SmallSat Rideshare program.
While SpaceX announces a $ 62 million single-satellite Falcon 9 launch, the company’s SmallSat Rideshare launches feature smaller satellites (as small as the size of a mailbox). ) an orbit option for just $ 1 million for 200 kilograms.
These car-sharing missions have become increasingly common in the space industry, with international competitors such as Arianespace’s Vega wanting to claim a share of the growing small satellite market.
Rideshare missions offer a different option for low-cost satellites looking for a trip into orbit, with smaller rockets, such as Rocket Lab’s Electron, offering a more personalized approach.
“SpaceX provides a competitive sharing option, taking full advantage of its Starlink launches,” Bryce Space and Technology senior analyst Phil Smith told CNBC.
Smith, the SpaceX service is not entirely on demand, but companies can pay a premium to launch it according to their schedule, rather than the main customer’s schedule.
“There’s a pretty reliable‘ bus route ’available,” Smith said on SpaceX, “while I guess you could compare companies like Rocket Lab and Virgin Orbit as guard taxis that take your satellite wherever you go. you want it as soon as possible ”
Elon Musk’s company launched 133 satellites for a wide variety of public and private customers, as well as 10 of its own Starlink satellites.
SpaceX customers aboard Transporter-1 are: Planet Labs, Exolaunch, D-Orbit, Kepler Communications, Spaceflight Inc, Nanoracks, NASA and Capella Space, in addition to iQPS, Loft Orbital, Spire Global, ICEYE, HawkEye 360 , Astrocast and the Institute of Applied Engineering at the University of South Florida.
It should be noted that the 10 Starlink satellites aboard this mission will be the first in the constellation to deploy in a polar orbit, as the company continues to expand public access to its Internet network by satellite. These 10 satellites were added after Momentus launched the first Vigoride mission from the launch of the Transporter-1 earlier this month. Momentus cited the additional time required for regulatory approval as the cause of the change.
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