SpaceX added 53 Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit after launching two missions 19 hours apart from California and Florida on June 3-4, 2026. The first flight lifted off at 11:40 a.m. EDT on Wednesday from Vandenberg Space Force Base, carrying 24 satellites in batch 17-47. The second mission departed Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 6:26 a.m. EDT on Thursday with 29 satellites in group 10-43. Both launches used Falcon 9 rockets and deployed their payloads into target orbits about an hour after liftoff.
The Vandenberg mission used booster B1088, which completed its 16th flight. It landed on the droneship Of Course I Still Love You in the Pacific Ocean. The Cape Canaveral launch employed booster B1090, making its 12th flight, and touched down on A Shortfall of Gravitas off Florida’s Atlantic coast. SpaceX confirmed both missions achieved successful first-stage recoveries.
The launches followed a busy schedule for SpaceX’s Starlink program. The California mission marked B1088’s first Starlink flight since March, while B1090’s Florida landing continued its reuse history. The two launches bring the total number of Starlink satellites in orbit to over 4,000 as of June 2026.
SpaceX’s Starlink constellation aims to provide global broadband internet. The company has conducted more than 100 Starlink launches since 2020, with regular missions from both coasts. The June flights were the first back-to-back Starlink launches in under 24 hours since December 2025.