Starship is preparing to unleash Starlink V3… SpaceX’s next orbital flight could mark the first operational deployment of its next-generation Starlink V3 satellites. The company plans to launch batches of Starlink V3 spacecraft over 14 flights, providing a major performance upgrade over the Starlink V2 satellites currently operating in orbit.
Unlike Starlink V2 satellites, which can launch aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, the larger Starlink V3 spacecraft require the increased payload capacity of Starship. SpaceX has not yet announced how many Starlink V3 satellites will fly on Flight 14. During its previous Starship test flight in July, the company carried 20 Starlink V3 satellites, but they were not intended to remain in orbit. The spacecraft re-entered the atmosphere over the Indian Ocean as Starship completed a controlled splashdown northwest of Australia.
Blue Origin has broken ground on a new satellite processing facility. The company is rebuilding Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral after the launch pad was damaged in a major explosion earlier this year. At the same time, Blue Origin has begun construction on a new facility designed to support U.S. Space Force missions. The Orlando Sentinel reports that Jeff Bezos’ aerospace company won a $78 million contract from the Space Systems Command last year to build the spacecraft processing facility by 2028.
The new hangar will not be reserved exclusively for Blue Origin. Instead, it will support any launch provider carrying national security payloads from Florida’s Space Coast.
Think big… The Payload Processing Facility (PPF) will span approximately 120,000 square feet, giving it enough room to accommodate the planned 25.5-foot (8.7-meter) payload fairing for an upgraded version of Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket. Blue Origin CEO Dave Limp said the facility will include four payload processing bays, two encapsulation bays and a multi-manifest area for national security, civil and commercial space missions.
Blue Origin’s construction activity at Cape Canaveral includes rebuilding the partially destroyed launch pad at Launch Complex 36, developing a second launch pad and constructing the new Payload Processing Facility. Once completed, the site will expand the company’s ability to prepare large satellites and other spacecraft for launch.
Next 3 Rocket Launches
September 4: Spectrum | Forward and Up | Andøya Spaceport, Norway | 20:00 UTC
September 6: Falcon 9 | Starlink 15-24 | Vandenberg Space Force Base, California | 10:59 UTC
September 9: Long March 2D | Unknown Payload | Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, China | 09:00 UTC
Source: arstechnica.com