Blue hour at SLC-40, where SpaceX's Falcon 9 B1049.6 stands ready to loft the 11th batch of Starlink satellites. Trevor Mahlmann A very sooty booster after 5 launches and landings. Trevor Mahlmann Reused booster: check. Trevor Mahlmann Reused legs: check. Trevor Mahlmann Reused fairings: check. Trevor Mahlmann Close-up of the previously used fairing. Trevor Mahlmann I spy with my little eye, a fairing catcher boat icon on the fairing. Trevor Mahlmann
Let's spare a moment of thought for B1049, a Falcon 9 first-stage booster that made its debut in September 2018 by launching the Telstar 18V commercial mission. Then, in January 2019, the core launched another commercial mission, sending a passel of Iridium satellites into space.
Both were successes. Since then the first stage has lofted three different Starlink missions into low Earth orbit as SpaceX seeks to build out a constellation of satellites to provide broadband Internet from space.
The Starlink platform may eventually turn into a very profitable business for SpaceX, although there remains a lot of work to do with regard to ground stations to receive signals, compliances with regulationsRead More – Source
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