SpaceX will be performing a launch today, Sunday, February 5, of a Spanish communications satellite, using one of its signature Falcon 9 rockets.
If you fancy watching along with the launch and the always exciting retrieval of the first stage booster, there is a livestream available and we have the details on how to watch below.
What to expect from the launch
The launch will take place from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, providing the weather doesn’t pose a problem. If the launch does get delayed for any reason, there is a backup launch opportunity tomorrow, Monday, February 6.
As is often the case for SpaceX launches, the first stage booster used by the Falcon 9 rocket for this launch has flown on several previous missions. These include three previous Starlink missions, as well as the Ispace HAKUTO-R Mission 1 and the launch of another communications satellite called SES-22.
The payload is a satellite called Amazonas Nexus, being launched for the communications company Hispasat. According to the company, the satellite features a new technology called a Digital Transparent Processor (DTP) that “is essential to increase the geographical flexibility of the mission to respond to eventual evolutions with respect to the initially envisaged commercial scenario.”
The satellite will have coverage over North America and South America including Greenland, and will be used to provide telecommunications services in a part of the microwave range called Ku band.
How to watch the launch
The launch will be livestreamed by SpaceX, including the final preparations before launch, the liftoff itself, and key mission moments like the separation of the first stage and fairing, as well as the deployment of the payloads. The livestream will also show the vertical landing of the first stage, which will be caught by the drone ship Just Read the Instructions, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.
Coverage will begin around 15 minutes before liftoff, so that’s around 5:15 p.m. ET (2:15 p.m. PT) on Sunday, February 5. You can watch the livestream either by heading to SpaceX’s YouTube page for the event or by using the video embedded near the top of this page.
