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12h ago

SpaceX Lines Up Two Vandenberg Starlink Launches as China Preps Tianzhou Cargo Flight

The clustered flights signal a high launch pace shaped by pad work for other missions.


A train of newly launched Starlink satellites streaks across the night sky above Carson National Forest, New Mexico. SpaceX launches batches of satellites in groups that travel in close formation before gradually spreading out to their operational orbits. Credit: M. Lewinsky, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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Overview

  • SpaceX plans a Falcon 9 launch from Vandenberg in a Tuesday, May 5 evening window to send 24 Starlink v2 Mini satellites to a sun-synchronous orbit, with a landing on the Pacific droneship Of Course I Still Love You.
  • NASASpaceFlight reports the first mission will use booster B1081 on its 24th flight, with recovery targeted on Of Course I Still Love You.
  • A second Falcon 9 from the same pad targets a Saturday, May 9 morning window for another batch of 24 Starlink satellites, with droneship recovery again planned in the Pacific.
  • China’s Tianzhou 10 is slated for launch on a Long March 7 later on May 9 to deliver food, fuel, spacesuits, and research gear to the Tiangong space station.
  • Analysts say pad time for a Cargo Dragon mission and upcoming Starship testing is shaping this week’s schedule after SpaceX logged 52 Falcon 9 flights in the first four months of 2026.