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Watch live: SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches on U.S. spy satellite agency mission from California

Watch live coverage as SpaceX launches a Falcon 9 rocket believed to be carrying Starshield satellites for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). Liftoff of the NROL-48 mission from pad 4E at ...

NROL-48 Mission

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SpaceX

SpaceX designs, manufactures and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft. The company was founded in 2002 to revolutionize space technology, with the ultimate goal of enabling people to live on other planets.

NROL-48

Circle Image

Overview

Destination: Unknown
Mission: Government/Top Secret

Unknown Space Launch Complex 4E Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA
B1081 - Landing Zone 4

Eleventh batch of satellites for a reconnaissance satellite constellation built by SpaceX and Northrop Grumman for the National Reconnaissance Office to provide imaging and other reconnaissance capabilities.

Telemetry

Launch trajectory and telemetry simulations provided by Flight Club - a rocket launch simulator and orbital trajectory visualiser for all things space!

Updates

Cosmic_Penguin • Sept. 18, 2025, 5:04 p.m.

Now targeting Sep 22 at 17:23 UTC


Cosmic_Penguin • Sept. 21, 2025, 3:21 p.m.

New T-0.


Cosmic_Penguin • Sept. 21, 2025, 3:33 p.m.

Tweaked T-0.


Cosmic_Penguin • Sept. 21, 2025, 4:28 p.m.

Tweaked T-0.


Cosmic_Penguin • Sept. 22, 2025, 3:28 a.m.

Tweaked T-0.


Falcon 9

Family:
Configuration: Block 5

Falcon 9 is a two-stage rocket designed and manufactured by SpaceX for the reliable and safe transport of satellites and the Dragon spacecraft into orbit. The Block 5 variant is the fifth major interval aimed at improving upon the ability for rapid reusability.

See Details
Specifications
  • Minimum Stage
    1
  • Max Stage
    2
  • Length
    70.0 m
  • Diameter
    3.65 m
  • Fairing Diameter
    5.2 m
  • Launch Mass
    549.0 T
  • Thrust
    7607.0 kN
Family
  • Name
    Falcon 9
  • Family
  • Variant
    Block 5
  • Alias
  • Full Name
    Falcon 9 Block 5
Payload Capacity
  • Launch Cost
    $52000000
  • Low Earth Orbit
    22800.0 kg
  • Geostationary Transfer Orbit
    8300.0 kg
  • Direct Geostationary
  • Sun-Synchronous Capacity

Booster Info


B1081

Status: Active


Type: Core
Flight Proven: Yes
First Flight: August 26, 2023
Last Flight: October 25, 2025
Flights: 19
Landings Attempted: 19
Landings Successful: 19
Previous B1081 Flights

Landing Information

The Falcon 9 booster B1081 has landed back at the launch site at LZ-4 after its 18th flight.

Result: Successful Return to Launch Site landing at Landing Zone 4.

SpaceX

SpaceX

(SpX)

CEO: Elon Musk Founded: 2002 Successes: 579 Failures: 15 Pending: 121

Agency Type:

Space Exploration Technologies Corp., known as SpaceX, is an American aerospace manufacturer and space transport services company headquartered in Hawthorne, California. It was founded in 2002 by entrepreneur Elon Musk with the goal of reducing space transportation costs and enabling the colonization of Mars. SpaceX operates from many pads, on the East Coast of the US they operate from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and historic LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center. They also operate from SLC-4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, usually for polar launches. Another launch site is being developed at Boca Chica, Texas.

INFO WIKI

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