The Falcon 9 rocket from SpaceX launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base at 10:05 a.m. PDT on Tuesday. This mission, named Starlink 17-53, sent 24 new internet satellites into orbit. The company now operates more than 10,800 Starlink satellites in low Earth orbit, each working to expand global broadband coverage.
The rocket’s first stage, B1063, has been used in 33 previous missions. It has supported launches for NASA, the European Space Agency, and other government agencies. This time, B1063 was set to return to the Pacific Ocean and land on the droneship Of Course I Still Love You. A successful landing would mark the 215th time that ship has helped SpaceX recover a booster, and it would bring the company’s total booster landings to 644.
The launch took place just hours before SpaceX's first earnings call as a publicly traded company. The call is scheduled for 4 p.m. EDT, 30 minutes after the stock market closes. This milestone marks a new step for SpaceX, as it opens itself up to public investors and financial oversight. The company is now operating under greater public scrutiny.
Looking ahead, SpaceX has several major projects in the pipeline. The company is preparing for its first orbital launch of the Starship rocket under the Flight 14 mission. Details on the exact launch date for this milestone remain to be announced. In addition, SpaceX is working on two key NASA missions. The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will be launched by a Falcon Heavy rocket no sooner than August 30, while the Crew-13 astronaut mission is set to fly aboard a Falcon 9 in September, with a no-earlier-than date of September 12.
SpaceX is planning another Starlink mission this weekend, with a potential launch scheduled for Saturday, August 8, from Vandenberg Space Force Base. The company has a four-hour launch window opening at 7 a.m. PT, with a potential backup opportunity available the following day if the launch is postponed. As with most SpaceX missions, the launch will be available to stream live on the company's website and its new X TV mobile app, starting about five minutes before liftoff.
The Falcon 9 rocket, which stands 230 feet tall, will carry another batch of 24 Starlink satellites into low-Earth orbit, continuing the expansion of the company’s satellite constellation that now serves millions of customers globally. This mission also highlights SpaceX’s role as a major government contractor, including its support of Department of Defense and NASA missions.
The launch will take place from Space Launch Complex 4-East (SLC-4E), which SpaceX leases as a launch site for its Falcon 9 rocket at the Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County. As has become typical in 2026, the rocket will fly at a southern trajectory.
Because Vandenberg is an active military base, the launch complex does not host public viewings of launches. But if conditions are clear, rocket launches from the Vandenberg Space Force Base can be viewed from several locations as far as Santa Barbara and Los Angeles. Space Launch Schedule, a website dedicated to tracking upcoming rocket launches, provided a list of places in Santa Barbara County in California to catch the launch in person: 13th Street and Arguello Boulevard, a public site with the closest views of SpaceX launches; Floradale Avenue and West Ocean Avenue, officially designated as the “viewing site for SLC-6”; Renwick Avenue and West Ocean Avenue, another intersection close to the base where spectators can park; and Santa Lucia Canyon Road and Victory Road, which provides a partial view of Complex 4.
The city of Lompoc in Santa Barbara County is filled with places to catch a rocket launch. The city's tourism bureau, Explore Lompoc, maintains this list with additional viewing locations: Ocean Park, 6851 Ocean Park Road, Lompoc, which, while it doesn't have a view of the launch pad itself, is located only four miles from the launch site and provides a good vantage to see rockets get off the ground; Allan Hancock College, 1 Hancock Drive, Lompoc, a community college located nine miles from the launch site where the launch pad and rocket's tip can be seen before liftoff; Riverbend Park, N A Street and McLaughlin Road, Lompoc, located within 10 miles of the launch site, is filled with large fields for activities or for spectators to set up chairs; and Surf Beach on Ocean Avenue, one of the closest and most popular places to watch rocket launches near Lompoc, as long as it's open and accessible. But a word of caution: There is an active train track, the Amtrak Surf Station, that visitors must cross. While trains don't run during launch windows, the vehicles could start up again with little warning if a liftoff is scrubbed.
Visit Ventura, the tourism bureau in Ventura County, provided a list to the USA TODAY Network of suggested locations to see a rocket launch from the county: Ventura Pier, 750 E. Harbor Blvd, is known as the oldest pier in all of California; Emma Wood State Beach, located on the Santa Barbara Channel south of U.S. 101; Serra Cross Park at Grant Park, located just above San Buenaventura City Hall, 501 Poli St., Ventura, offers a panoramic seascape view; San Buenaventura State Beach, 901 San Pedro St., Ventura, located adjacent to the Ventura Pier; and Cemetery Memorial Park, Main Street and South Crimea Street, Ventura.