SpaceX targets Cape Canaveral launch with 29 Starlink satellites

SpaceX is targeting a Falcon 9 liftoff Tuesday afternoon from Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, sending 29 Starlink satellites into low-Earth orbit in a launch window that opens at 3:56 p.m. ET and runs through 7:56 p.m. ET. The company posted a detailed prelaunch timeline as teams completed last-minute preparations, and public viewing guidance notes the flight may be visible as far south as West Palm Beach depending on weather. Officials expect no sonic booms.

The mission, cataloged as Starlink Group 6-110, follows a busy February schedule at Cape Canaveral that has seen multiple Starlink batches and other commercial and government launches. Community launch trackers briefly listed 28 satellites for this flight before updating their manifests to show 29; SpaceX’s schedule and the consolidated run sheet now reflect the larger payload. SpaceX has not publicly assigned a specific booster serial number or confirmed a recovery plan for this flight in the material released ahead of launch.

SpaceX’s posted countdown timeline lays out the final 40 minutes of operations. At T-00:35 the rocket begins RP-1 and first-stage liquid oxygen loading, with second-stage LOX topping off around T-00:16. Engine chill starts at T-00:07, and final flight-computer checks and propellant tank pressurization begin at T-00:01. Ignition sequence is commanded at T-00:00:03 and liftoff at T-00:00:00. Stage events follow: peak dynamic pressure or Max Q at about T-00:01:12, main engine cutoff at roughly T-00:02:14, stage separation and second-stage engine start seconds later, and fairing jettison during ascent.

For viewers, live coverage will begin 90 minutes before liftoff at floridatoday.com/space. FLORIDA TODAY’s space team, Rick Neale and Brooke Edwards, with visuals journalists Craig Bailey, Malcolm Denemark and Tim Shortt, will provide an up-to-the-minute live blog with a countdown clock. The VisitSpaceCoast page and mobile apps such as Space Coast Launches offer continuously updated schedules and viewing advice; all published launch times remain subject to change until the range gives a final go.

Operationally, this flight illustrates SpaceX’s steady cadence of Starlink deployments, designed to expand the company’s space-based internet constellation. The patchwork of public and community schedules underscores the fluid nature of launch planning: times, manifest counts and recovery plans are often revised in the days and hours before liftoff. Reporters and spectators should check live feeds and official SpaceX channels for last-minute hold notices or scrub information.

Range safety and weather will determine whether the window yields a launch attempt; if the countdown proceeds to ignition, mission controllers will follow the published T-minus sequence and post-liftoff stage events. For those planning to watch, organizers recommend arriving early, using the live blog or apps for real-time updates, and heeding local public-safety guidance at viewing locations.