Watch live as SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket launches and attempts to deliver BulgariaSat-1 to a Geostationary Transfer Orbit. The launch is at Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. According to SpaceX, BulgariaSat-1 is the first geostationary communications satellite in Bulgaria’s history. The rocket, Falcon 9, will attempt a landing on the “Of Course I Still Love You” drone ship, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean, according to SpaceX. </s> On June 23, 2017, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket successfully launched the BulgariaSat-1 satellite into orbit—the first geostationary communications satellite in Bulgaria’s history. This mission marked the second reflight of a Falcon 9 first stage, having previously supported the Iridium-1 mission from Vandenberg Air Force Base in January of this year.

Following stage separation, the first stage of Falcon 9 successfully landed on SpaceX’s East Coast droneship “Of Course I Still Love You,” stationed in the Atlantic Ocean. This marks the first time a Falcon 9 first stage has landed on both SpaceX’s East and West coast droneships, having previously landed on “Just Read the Instructions” in the Pacific Ocean. </s> This mission is called BulgariaSat-1 and will carry Bulgaria's first geostationary communications satellite into a high geostationary orbit around the Earth. It's launching from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and a drone ship called "Of Course I Still Love You" will be waiting in the Atlantic Ocean for the Falcon 9's first-stage landing. If things don't go as planned, there's another launch window tomorrow at 2:10 PM ET.

This isn't the only SpaceX launch that's happening this weekend, though. On Sunday, a Falcon 9 will lift off from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California carrying 10 satellites for the company Iridium. Liftoff is set for 1:25 PM PT, and the company will once again attempt to land the first stage of the rocket.

It's not the first time SpaceX has flown and landed a flight-proven rocket; that happened on March 30. But rockets are the most expensive part of spaceflight; by reusing Falcon 9 first stages, SpaceX is cutting costs considerably. Reusable components are crucial to the future of human spaceflight, and SpaceX is certainly making steady and significant improvements in that regard.

Update, 6/23/2017, 1:05 PM: SpaceX tweeted that the ground team is taking additional time for checks. New liftoff time is 3:10 PM ET. </s> SpaceX successfully launched another Falcon 9 rocket for the eighth time in 2017 this Friday, June 23, matching last year's total flight number. Another launch is scheduled on Sunday, June 25, which will put the organization on track with its goal to launch a total of 20 to 24 missions this year.

(Photo: Reuters/Gene Blevins)A photo of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the Jason-3 spacecraft onboard at the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California in January 2016.

The BulgariaSat-1 mission launched on Friday, at 3:10 p.m. Several minutes later, the rocket's first stage safely landed on the floating platform located in the Atlantic Ocean. The upper stage of the rocket carried a Bulgarian geostationary communications satellite designed and built by Space System Loral (SSL), and put it into orbit.

"BulgariaSat-1 is designed based on SSL's proven 1300 series platform and it will provide service in the Balkans, Eastern and Western Europe, the Middle East, Northern Africa, and the Caucasus with its highpower European beam," SpaceX stated in a news release.

"In addition, BulgariaSat-1 is equipped with a spot beam which can be used to provide extra capacity over the Balkans. The satellite is designed to provide service for 15 years or longer," the organization explained.

"BulgariaSat-1 is the first geostationary communications satellite in Bulgaria's history," SpaceX added.

The Falcon 9 rocket that launched on Friday was previously deployed back in January from the Vandenberg Air Force Base located in California. After its launch at the time, the rocket landed to a platform in the Pacific. This means that Friday's successful launch is the second time SpaceX has successfully sent a used rocket stage to space that made it back to Earth safely.

SpaceX relaunched a previously-used rocket for the first time this March. At the time, it took around 11 months since it first landed to prepare the rocket for reuse. However, for the Falcon 9 rocket that departed and returned on Friday, there was only about six months in between the first and second scheduled launches, indicating that the turnaround was quicker this time.

The successful launch and landing of a reused rocket marks the beginning of SpaceX's plan to reduce the cost of traveling to space through the reuse of rocket pieces. </s> SpaceX has successfully launched a Falcon 9 to orbit during its BulgariaSat-1 mission Friday. The launch reused a first stage booster first employed during an Iridium Communications mission in January of this year, after that Falcon 9 first stage was recovered and refurbished.

The mission on Friday was to delivery Bulgaria’s first ever geostationary communications satellite into orbit, so that it could begin operations broadcast communication networks and HDTV signals for clients on Earth in parts of Europe. The satellite was built by SSL out of Palo Alto, California.

The first stage also landed successfully on the company’s drone ship in the Atlantic ocean, “Of course I still love you,” making it the first ever to have successfully landed on both of SpaceX’s two ocean-borne drone landing vessels. That recovery was also the most challenging successful landing so far for SpaceX, because of launch conditions.

SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk warned on Twitter prior to the launch that the Falcon 9 used would “experience its highest ever reentry force” during today’s launch, along with record levels of heat, making it less likely that SpaceX will be able to successfully recover the rocket for reuse this time around. In fact, Musk said there’s a “good chance” they don’t get the rocket back.

The launch from Pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center is the second ever re-use of an orbital rocket, after SpaceX successfully completed its first reflight of recycled Falcon 9 first stage back in March.

The primary mission was also a success, with SpaceX deploying the BulgariaSat-1 satellite into geostationary transfer orbit as of around 3:45 PM EDT. Next up, SpaceX will attempt its Iridium-2 mission launch on Sunday, June 25. </s> CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - SpaceX has been given the all-clear to proceed with an early Tuesday Falcon 9 rocket launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station with a commercial communications satellite.

SpaceX's fifth mission of the year -- and second overall launch from the Space Coast in as many days – will target a 12:33 a.m. liftoff from Launch Complex 40. According to News 6 partner at Florida Today, teams have two hours to launch the satellite for Spain-based Hispasat.

Forecasters expect 90 percent "go" conditions for the liftoff, according to the Air Force's 45th Weather Squadron.

The satellite, known as Hispasat 30W-6, is a 12,000-pound spacecraft that will provide television, broadband and other communications services to the Americas and Europe. It was manufactured by Space Systems Loral in Palo Alto, California, before shipment to Cape Canaveral in January.

SpaceX will boost the heavy satellite to a geostationary transfer orbit, resulting in a limited leftover fuel supply for the Falcon 9 booster to attempt an automated landing. The Of Course I Still Love You drone ship is expected to host the attempt and return to Port Canaveral with the 162-foot-tall booster several days later.

Tuesday's launch attempt follows last Thursday's successful 5:02 p.m. blastoff of an Atlas V rocket with the newest National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration weather satellite, labeled GOES-S. The geostationary spacecraft should become fully operational before the end of the year. </s> New Delhi: In a mission that marked the company's second launch of a reused rocket's first stage, SpaceX successfully flagged off its Falcon 9 rocket carrying a Bulgarian communications satellite.

The BulgariaSat-1, sitting tight aboard the Falcon 9, lifted off from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center on Friday, SpaceNews reported. The spacecraft separated from the Falcon 9's second stage 35 minutes after lift-off.

The first stage landed on a SpaceX drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean after what SpaceX cautioned would be a "super challenging" landing attempt due to the high reentry loads for this particular flight profile.

Due to an error, the video from the drone ship cut out shortly before the landing, but was restored several seconds later, showing the stage upright, but leaning slightly, having landed slightly off-center.

"Rocket is extra toasty and hit the deck hard (used almost all of the emergency crush core), but otherwise good," SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk tweeted shortly after the landing.

He had tweeted prior to the launch that, because of the high reentry loads, there was a "good chance (the rocket booster doesn't make it back".

This launch marked the second time that SpaceX has reflown a Falcon 9 first stage, after the March launch of the SES-10 satellite.

The first stage for this launch first flew in January on a launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, carrying 10 Iridium Next satellites into orbit before landing on a ship offshore.

BulgariaSat selected SSL to build BulgariaSat-1 in September 2014, a deal that also included the SpaceX launch.

The satellite, with an estimated mass of 4,000 kg, carries a total of 32 Ku-band transponders to provide fixed and broadcast satellite services and has a planned 15-year lifetime. </s> CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA (REUTERS) - SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket carrying Spacecom's AMOS-17 communications satellite at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on Tuesday (Aug 6).

The mission comes nearly three years after a launch pad explosion destroyed a different Israeli communications satellite (Spacecom's AMOS-6) in September 2016, Business Insider reported.

The satellite will provide increased connectivity across Africa by supporting a "growth in a variety of broadcast, broadband, mobility, and data services," according to a press release. </s> SpaceX successfully launched a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 12:45 a.m. ET Monday and delivered the Telstar 18 VANTAGE commercial communications satellite to geostationary transfer orbit. The rocket's first stage successfully landed on the Of Course I Still Love You drone ship and will return to Port Canaveral in a couple days.
SpaceX launches BulgariaSat-1, Bulgaria's first ever geostationary communications satellite, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on a Falcon 9 Full Thrust rocket, which successfully lands on an autonomous spaceport drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean.