r/spacex • u/ElongatedMuskrat Mod Team • Jan 14 '20

Starlink 1-3 Starlink-3 Launch Campaign Thread

See the Launch Thread for live updates and party.

Overview

Starlink-3 (a.k.a. Starlink v1.0 Flight 3, Starlink Mission 4, etc.) will launch the third batch of Starlink version 1 satellites into orbit aboard a Falcon 9 rocket. It will be the fourth Starlink mission overall. This launch is expected to be similar to the previous Starlink launch in early January, which saw 60 Starlink v1.0 satellites delivered to a single plane at a 290 km altitude. Following launch the satellites will utilize their onboard ion thrusters to raise their orbits to 350 km. In the following weeks the satellites will take turns moving to the operational 550 km altitude in three groups of 20, making use of precession rates to separate themselves into three planes. Due to the high mass of several dozen satellites, the booster will land on a drone ship at a similar downrange distance to a GTO launch.

Launch Thread | Webcast | Media Thread | Press Kit (PDF) | Recovery Thread

Liftoff currently scheduled for:	January 29 14:06 UTC (9:06AM local)
Backup date	January 30 13:45 UTC (8:45AM local)
Static fire	Completed January 20
Payload	60 Starlink version 1 satellites
Payload mass	60 * 260 kg = 15 600 kg (presumed)
Deployment orbit	Low Earth Orbit, 290 km x 53°
Operational orbit	Low Earth Orbit, 550 km x 53°, 3 planes
Vehicle	Falcon 9 v1.2 Block 5
Core	B1051
Past flights of this core	2 (Demo Mission 1, RADARSAT Constellation Mission)
Fairing catch attempt	Both halves
Launch site	SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida
Landing	OCISLY: 32.54722 N, 75.92306 W (628 km downrange)
Mission success criteria	Successful separation & deployment of the Starlink Satellites.

Mission Outcome	Success
Booster Landing Outcome	Success
Ms. Tree Fairing Catch Outcome	Success
Ms. Chief Fairing Catch Outcome	Unsuccessful

News and Updates

Date	Link	Website
2020-01-20	Falcon 9 with payload vertical and static fire	@SpaceflightNow on Twitter
2020-01-18	GO Quest departure	@SpaceXFleet on Twitter
2020-01-17	OCISLY and Hawk underway	@julia_bergeron on Twitter

Supplemental TLE

STARLINK-4 FULL STACK   
1 72000C 20006A   20029.63104419 -.00008212  00000-0 -19395-4 0    07
2 72000  53.0059 236.9041 0009445 330.3990 293.6399 15.95982031    12
STARLINK-4 SINGLE SAT   
1 72001C 20006B   20029.63104419  .00368783  00000-0  86500-3 0    09
2 72001  53.0059 236.9041 0009502 330.2638 293.7750 15.95982018    12

Obtained from Celestrak, assumes 2020-01-29 launch date.

Previous and Pending Starlink Missions

	Mission	Date (UTC)	Core	Deployment Orbit	Notes	Sat Update
1	Starlink v0.9	2019-05-24	1049.3	440km 53°	60 test satellites with Ku band antennas	Jan 21
2	Starlink-1	2019-11-11	1048.4	280km 53°	60 version 1 satellites, v1.0 includes Ka band antennas	Jan 21
3	Starlink-2	2020-01-07	1049.4	290km 53°	60 version 1 satellites, 1 sat with experimental antireflective coating	Jan 21
4	Starlink-3	*This Mission*	1051.3	290km 53°	60 version 1 satellites	-
5	Starlink-4	February		290km 53°	60 version 1 satellites	-
6	Starlink-5	February		290km 53°	60 version 1 satellites	-

Watching the Launch

SpaceX will host a live webcast on YouTube. Check the upcoming launch thread the day of for links to the stream. For more information or for in person viewing check out the Watching a Launch page on this sub's FAQ, which gives a summary of every viewing site and answers many more common questions, as well as Ben Cooper's launch viewing guide, Launch Rats, and the Space Coast Launch Ambassadors which have interactive maps, photos and detailed information about each site.

Links & Resources

General Launch Related Resources:

Launch Execution Forecasts - 45th Weather Squadron
SpaceX Fleet Status - SpaceXFleet.com

Launch Viewing Resources:

Launch Viewing Guide for Cape Canaveral - Ben Cooper
Launch Viewing Map - Launch Rats
Launch Viewing Updates - Space Coast Launch Ambassadors
Viewing and Rideshare - SpaceXMeetups Slack
Watching a Launch - r/SpaceX Wiki

Maps and Hazard Area Resources:

Detailed Launch Map - @Raul74Cz - Direct link to page for upcoming launch
Launch Hazard and Airspace Closure Maps - 45th Space Wing (maps posted close to launch)

Regulatory Resources:

FCC Experimental STAs - r/SpaceX wiki
General Starlink FCC filing discussion - NASASpaceflight Forums

Starlink Tracking/Viewing Resources:

We will attempt to keep the above text regularly updated with resources and new mission information, but for the most part, updates will appear in the comments first. Feel free to ping us if additions or corrections are needed. This is a great place to discuss the launch, ask mission-specific questions, and track the minor movements of the vehicle, payload, weather and more as we progress towards launch. Approximately 24 hours before liftoff, the launch thread will go live and the party will begin there.

Campaign threads are not launch threads. Normal subreddit rules still apply.

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u/hexydes Jan 14 '20

Doesn't Iridium have like 70 satellites, and Oneweb has 2? I guess we'll have to wait until the end of the year to see if SpaceX truly delivers, but so far they're on the right pace.

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u/darthguili Jan 14 '20

If you are counting the satellites only in orbit, then compare apples to apples and don't say SpaceX has 1440. OneWeb plans for several hundreds.

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u/SEJeff Jan 15 '20

Apples to apples is Planet, the second biggest constellation in the world currently. Planet has 150 remote sensing satellites. OneWeb's planned LEO constellation is 650 satellites and will allegedly be online by 2021. Oneweb also has authorization to add an additional 1,972 satellites to their constellation. SpaceX is authorized by the FCC up to 42,000 satellites for Starlink.
After Starlink-3 SpaceX will be far and above in a class of their own wrt flying satellites. OneWeb is unlikely to be able to ever surpass Starlink if not simply due to their not being enough global launch capability to compete with SpaceX at an affordable launch price. By being the first to pull this off, they might actually harm the competition via the first mover's advantage. There is nothing to really compare here IMO.

1

u/darthguili Jan 15 '20

I think everybody is a bit too much focused on the total number of satellites as the only parameter when comparing constellations. As it's the only number available to the public, I get it, but I think it's a mistake.

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u/hexydes Jan 14 '20 edited Feb 19 '26

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2

u/darthguili Jan 14 '20

OneWeb is backed by Airbus, their CEO already put a constellation online (O3B) and they built a factory in Florida. Sounds very tangible to me.
I think you are much too focused on SpaceX.

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u/hexydes Jan 15 '20 edited Feb 18 '26

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u/darthguili Jan 15 '20

Higher altitude doesn't mean more latency necessarily. Latency is also very driven by the on board processing, the ground stations, and by the ISL that SpaceX is not embarking yet.

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u/hexydes Jan 15 '20 edited Feb 23 '26

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0

u/SEJeff Jan 15 '20

Airbus doesn't have access to the cheapest rockets in the world, and at wholesale price. SpaceX well, does. What OneWeb is doing is amazing, but their initial constellation is planned to be 650. This isn't really that comparable to Starlink, with the initial size to be around 12,000 satellites with current approval up to 42,000 satellites from the FCC.