SpaceX launches 24 Starlink satellites to orbit from California (photos)
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched 24 more of the company's Starlink internet satellites from California's central coast late on Friday night (July 31).
On Friday evening, July 31, 2026, SpaceX successfully launched 24 Starlink broadband satellites into orbit from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base. The mission, designated as the 26th for the reusable Falcon 9 rocket, named B1081, saw the first stage return to Earth eight and a half minutes later, touching down in the Pacific Ocean aboard the SpaceX droneship "Of Course I Still Love You."
The 24 satellites were deployed into low Earth orbit 61.5 minutes after liftoff, joining over 10,800 other Starlink spacecraft that comprise the largest satellite network ever assembled.
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