Spaceflight Now reported that SpaceX “launched two Falcon 9 rockets in a span of a little more than four hours Friday, a record-setting day that began with the launch of 52 Starlink internet satellites from California and ended with the sunset liftoff of two SES television broadcast payloads from Florida.” The two missions were launched just over four hours apart and set a record “for the shortest span between two SpaceX Falcon 9 launches in the company’s history.” Space News reported that the payloads included SES-18 and SES-19, built by Northrop Grumman. The two satellites “are due to start services in June after using onboard hydrazine-fueled propulsion to reach their geostationary orbital slots.” SES-18 is “set to replace the operator’s aging SES-3 satellite at 103 degrees west,” while SES-19 is “heading to 135 degrees west to join the SES-22 satellite that SpaceX launched last year.”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now); More Info (Space News)
Video
SES-18 and SES-19 Mission
On Friday, March 17 at 7:38 p.m. ET, a SpaceX Falcon 9 launched SES-18 and SES-19 from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
(SpaceX; YouTube)