A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base on July 1, 2026, during the Starlink 17-46 mission. Image: SpaceX

SpaceX kicked off the back half of 2026 with a Falcon 9 launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base Wednesday night.

The Starlink 17-46 mission added another 24 broadband internet satellites to the company’s low Earth orbit constellation that consists of more than 10,700 satellites. SpaceX launched nearly 1,600 satellites during the first half of 2026.

Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 4 East happened 7:57 p.m. PDT (10:57 p.m. EDT / 0257 UTC). The rocket flew on a south-southwesterly trajectory upon leaving the pad.

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SpaceX launched the Starlink 17-46 mission using the Falcon 9 first stage booster with the tail number B1100. This was its seventh flight after previously launching the NROL-105 mission along with five previous batches of Starlink satellites.

A little more than eight minutes after liftoff, B1100 landed on the drone ship, ‘Of Course I Still Love You,’ positioned in the Pacific Ocean. This was the 207th landing on this vessel and the 632nd booster landing for SpaceX to date.