A RECORD NUMBER OF SATELLITES IN A SINGLE LAUNCH BY ELON MUSK'S SPACEX! GOOD GOING ELON!

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HIGH SILLINESS IN THE LAND OF THE FREE

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Volume 118                                 January 23, 2021

 

 ELON MUSK SETS YET ANOTHER RECORD

A reprint from Darrell Etherington of TechCrunch

Sat, January 23, 2021, 7:11 AM

 

 

SpaceX is set to launch the very first of its dedicated rideshare missions – an offering it introduced in 2019 that allows small satellite operators to book a portion of a payload on a Falcon 9 launch. SpaceX's rocket has a relatively high payload capacity compared to the size of many of the small satellites produced today, so a rideshare mission like this offers smaller companies and startups a chance to get their spacecraft in orbit without breaking the bank.

The cargo capsule atop the Falcon 9 flying today holds a total of 133 satellites according to SpaceX, which is a new record for the highest number of satellites being launched on a single rocket – beating out a payload of 104 spacecraft delivered by Indian Space Research Organization's PSLV-C37 launch back in February 2017. It'll be a key demonstration not only of SpaceX's rideshare capabilities, but also of the complex coordination involved in a launch that includes deployment of multiple payloads into different target orbits in relatively quick succession.

SpaceX will now offer dedicated ‘rideshare’ launches for small satellites

This launch will be closely watched in particular for its handling of orbital traffic management, since it definitely heralds what the future of private space launches could look like in terms of volume of activity. Some of the satellites flying on this mission are not much larger than an iPad, so industry experts will be paying close attention to how they're deployed and tracked to avoid any potential conflicts.

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