SpaceX completes 100th orbital launch of 2026, 24 Starlink satellites deployed

en.Wedoany.com Reported - Dimension News, August 19 — SpaceX successfully launched a Falcon 9 rocket from SLC-4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, sending 24 Starlink broadband satellites into low Earth orbit. The mission was designated Starlink Group 17-50.

The first-stage booster for this launch, designated B1097, flew its 12th mission. It previously supported the Twilight mission, the Transporter-17 rideshare mission, Sentinel-6B, NROL-172, and seven Starlink missions. Approximately 8 minutes after liftoff, B1097 successfully landed on the autonomous droneship "Of Course I Still Love You" in the Pacific Ocean. This marked the 219th successful recovery for the droneship and the 651st first-stage landing for the Falcon rocket family.

This launch was SpaceX's 100th orbital mission of 2026. The total number of Starlink satellites in orbit has now approached 11,000. Later this week, SpaceX will conduct two more Starlink launches: Group 10-39 from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on August 20, and Group 15-20 from Vandenberg again on August 22.