Created 10-Dec-22
Modified 13-Dec-23
from Floridatoday.com...
Lifting off into a cloudless sky just after sunset at 5:27 p.m. the first batch of 40 OneWeb internet-beaming satellites to launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 was carried to orbit from pad 39-A at Kennedy Space Center Thursday, Dec. 8.
The mission dubbed Launch 15 flew on a southerly trajectory skirting the coast of South Florida threading between the state and the Bahamas.
Shortly after liftoff, Space Coast spectators were treated to sonic booms as the Falcon 9 first-stage touched down at Landing Zone 1 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Technically a competitor of SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet services, OneWeb is in the process of building out its own orbital constellation to provide worldwide internet connectivity services. Previous OneWeb missions were launched on Russian Soyuz rockets, but OneWeb cut its ties with Russia's space agency in March after Russia invaded Ukraine.
Unlike SpaceX's Starlink internet service meant for residential consumer use powered by a constellation of more than 3,000 satellites, OneWeb says its network, to be comprised of about 600 satellites, is aimed more toward heavy users like telecom providers, aviation and maritime industries, and governments.
© Dennis Huff
