Elon Musk’s SpaceX has set a record for orbital rocket launches in 2023, carrying out 96 successful missions this year as it continues to dominate the US satellite market.
The California-based company carried out 91 launches with its heavy-duty Falcon 9 rocket and an additional five with the Falcon Heavy, enabling it to easily smash its previous record of 61 launches in 2022.
SpaceX began to top off the record on Thursday night by launching the Falcon Heavy, carrying the US military’s X-37B spaceplane from Nasa’s Kennedy Space Center at 1:07am GMT. Just under three hours later, the Falcon 9 was launched, carrying 23 Starlink internet satellites.
That also set a new SpaceX record for the shortest time between orbital launches, which is also the lowest time between launches in Florida since the Nasa Gemini 11 mission back in 1966.
The 96 launches are just under Mr Musk’s goal of 100, which he first pitched as a “thought experiment”, said Jon Edwards, vice president of Falcon launch vehicles at SpaceX.
Mr Musk “intended to unlock our thinking as to how we might accelerate Falcon across all levels of production and launch”, he wrote on X.
“Only a few years later and here we are. I’m so incredibly proud to work with the best team on earth, and so excited to see what we achieve next year.”
Mr Musk has yet to publicly comment on SpaceX’s achievement.
SpaceX’s Starlink is a low-Earth orbit satellite constellation service that provides internet access using satellites that orbit the planet at between heights of 200km and 2,000km.
For perspective, the International Space Station is at 408km, while Hubble Space Telescope is at 547km.
The service provides high-speed, low-latency broadband internet. Within each coverage area, orders are fulfilled on a first-come first-served basis.
Satellite internet is a viable option compared to regular internet services. For instance, to have access to the internet using a 5G or any broadband connection, a device must be within range of a cell tower.
United Arab Emirates Dirham Exchange Rate
