Key facts
- SpaceX's Falcon 9 booster achieved a new record with its 37th flight.
- Future Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launches from Florida will be dedicated to customer payloads.
- SpaceX aims to begin Starship launches from Kennedy Space Center by year-end, though mid-2027 is more probable.
- Starship is designed to carry larger Starlink Version 3 satellites.
SpaceX's busiest launch site at Cape Canaveral is expected to become quieter for Starlink missions as the company shifts focus to its next-generation Starship program. The recent launch marked a record 37th flight for a Falcon 9 first stage booster. Moving forward, all Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launches from Florida will carry customer payloads, including the upcoming launch of NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope on August 30 and a crewed mission to the International Space Station in mid-September.
Officials plan to phase out the Falcon 9 for commercial missions in favor of Starship, leading to concerns among customers about launch service availability post-2028. While SpaceX aims to begin Starship launches from Kennedy Space Center by the end of the year, significant work remains, making a mid-2027 debut more probable. Starship is designed to carry larger Starlink Version 3 satellites, and its next test flight, Flight 14, is slated to launch the first V3s from Texas as soon as next month.