The Falcon 9 rocket by SpaceX, shall set off a GPS satellite for the US Space Force. And you can watch it online.
The flight is the 17th launch by SpaceX this year.
The Falcon 9 rocket shall take off from the Space Launch Complex 40 situated at Cape Carnival Air Force Station in Florida. It will blast off at 9.55 pm. And the rocket shall be bearing the GPS III SV04 satellite.
You can enjoy the life directly from SpaceX.
The fourth launch of its kind
Let us hope that everything goes on as planned. If that happens, then this will be the fourth launch of the GPS III of the satellite. The very first one took off in December 2018 and the second one was set off in August 2019. In addition to those, the third launch took place on June 30 of this year. Plus, the first one and the third one were set off using different Falcon 9 rockets.
For the second satellite, the last Delta IV Medium was used.
The capabilities of the upgraded GPS satellites
These GPS satellites are built by Lockheed Martin in Colorado. The sophisticated satellites have immense anti-jamming capabilities. Plus, they are eight times more efficient than the previous versions. Also, for enhanced accuracy, they have more powerful signals.
The next two GPS missions namely the GPS III-SV05 and the GPS III-SV06 shall be launched by SpaceX on the veteran Falcon 9 stages. After the work is completed, the rockets will return back to the Earth. Also, these shall be released sometime next year.
How does the GPS satellite help?
The satellite is fourth in the line of the 10 upgraded GPS satellites for the military. These satellites aid in navigation, positioning, and timing services for over billions of users around the world.
The Falcon 9 booster for the current mission is also coined as the B1062 for SpaceX. To replace an age-old ancestor that was launched some 20 years ago, the B1062 will bear an advanced GPS into the orbit.
Additionally, this shall be the 91st launch of a Falcon 9 rocket, For the intended recovery attempt, the SpaceX drones, Of Course, I Still Love You and Just Read the Instructions are situated over the Atlantic Ocean. The rocket’s first stage is expected to touch down after approximately 9 minutes.
Moreover, we do not know if SpaceX will grab the fairings as they fall down to the ground or basically take them out after they land in the water. However, GO Ms Tree and GO Ms Chief are positioned in the recovery area.
