SpaceX Falcon 9 launches early morning Starlink mission from California (video)

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A new stack of Starlink satellites is now in orbit following an early morning SpaceX launch from California.

A Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at 3:25 a.m. EDT (0725 GMT) on Oct. 27, from from Pad 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base. The rocket delivered the 27 satellites of Starlink Group 15-16 to low Earth orbit (LEO), and successfully executed its first stage booster landing.

The mission's booster, B1082, cut its engines and disengaged from Falcon 9's upper stage approximately 2.5 minutes into flight, and adjusted its trajectory for a touchdown on SpaceX's Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY) droneship in the Pacific Ocean.

A white rocket blasts off in the dark of night.

B1082 successfullly landed on OCISLY at T+8:23, seconds before Falcon 9's second stage completed its first engine burn. The return of B1082 marks the booster's 21st Starlink mission, and 26th overall flight, the others of which include USSF-62, OneWeb Launch 20, NROL-145, Transporter-18.

Falcon 9's upper stage ignited its engine for a second time about 53 minutes after liftoff, circularizing its orbit with a burn that lasted a very short 3 seconds. That was followed several minutes later by the deployment of the rocket's Starlink payloads.

Previous Booster B1082 launches

SpaceX's Starlink network consists of more than 11,000 active spacecraft. The speed with which the company is delivering them to orbit in bulk, however, has slowed somewhat.

As SpaceX shifts focus to its larger, more powerful Starship rocket under development, plans to retire Falcon 9 have already begun. Part of that process included ending Starlink launches from Florida earlier this year.

Today's mission was the 117th Falcon 9 launch of 2026, so far. About three-quarters of those were dedicated to Starlink.

Josh Dinner is Space.com's Spaceflight Staff Writer and a photographer with a passion for science and exploration. He has worked the space beat since 2016, covering the evolution of NASA's commercial spaceflight partnerships and crewed missions, planetary science missions, the Artemis program and humanity's return to the moon. He also enjoys building 1:144-scale model rockets and spacecraft. Find some of Josh's launch photography on Instagram, and follow him on X, where he mostly posts in haiku.

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