KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. – SpaceX achieved a significant milestone over the weekend with the launch of its Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. The launch marked a historic moment as it was the first time the European Commission’s Galileo satellites were launched on an American-made rocket from U.S. soil.
The Falcon 9 rocket took off from Launch Complex 39A at 8:34 p.m. EDT, carrying a pair of Galileo satellites for the European Commission’s satellite navigation system. This mission was notable as the first stage booster, identified as B1060 in SpaceX’s fleet, was launched for the 20th and final time. Due to the demands of delivering the payload to medium Earth orbit, SpaceX did not plan to recover the booster this time.
SpaceX shared on social media that the last time a first stage was expended during a Falcon 9 mission was 146 flights ago in November 2022. The company is continuously working on qualifying its boosters and payload fairings for up to 40 missions each, leveraging the data gathered from Falcon vehicle flights to advance the development of the reusable Starship rocket.
While the booster was not recovered during this mission, it set a record as the most flight-proven booster to launch a customer payload. SpaceX removed the hypersonic grid fins and landing legs that are typically installed on the booster for recovery purposes. The recovery vessel, named Bob after former NASA astronaut Bob Behnken, retrieved the two-part payload fairing protecting the Galileo satellites from the Atlantic Ocean.
The Galileo satellite constellation is a critical part of Europe’s global navigation satellite system, supporting services similar to the United States’ GPS. With 28 satellites in orbit since December 2016, the Galileo constellation faced challenges due to the retirement of previous launch vehicles, requiring Europe to turn to SpaceX for launches.
European Commission’s commissioner for the internal market, Thierry Breton, highlighted the significance of partnering with SpaceX for critical satellite launches. The European Commission finalized a €180 million, two-launch deal with SpaceX, marking a departure from traditional launch providers due to the lack of a European orbital launch vehicle.
The impact of SpaceX’s role in European satellite launches has been a topic of discussion for years, with a growing recognition of the challenges facing the European space industry in remaining competitive. The upcoming launch of the Ariane 6 rocket represents a significant step in reestablishing Europe’s access to space, a priority for the European Space Agency to resume regular rocket launches from Europe’s Spaceport.
As Europe navigates the changing landscape of the global space industry, partnerships with commercial launch providers like SpaceX play a crucial role in ensuring access to space for critical satellite missions.