Galileo L13 mission: SpaceX launch on Tuesday sees ESA satellites delivered to orbit

After being pushed back two days in a row, a Falcon 9 rocket quietly rose into the evening sky. The rocket looked like a torch as it flew opposite the late day sun. A swirling white trail was all that was left behind as the rocket ascended through the clouds and into space.

With the previous Galileo launch this year, SpaceX disposed of the booster, which means allowing it to drop unrecovered into the Atlantic Ocean, to allow for additional power to get the satellites into their intended orbit. However, according to SpaceX, data retrieved from that flight allowed for adjustments. So this time, SpaceX was able to land the booster. Some of these changes included reducing the weight and adjusting the flight path.

This Falcon 9 booster was flying its 22nd mission. In addition to 12 Starlink launches, it has supported CRS-22, Crew-3, Turksat 5B, Crew-4, CRS-25, Eutelsat HOTBIRD 13G, O3B mPOWER, PSN SATRIA, and Telkomsat Marah Putih 2.

It was eight and a half minutes into the flight that the booster landed on the droneship Just Read the Instructions out on the Atlantic Ocean.

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SpaceX launches ESA Galileo satellites

The Galileo L13 mission delivered the next two navigational satellites in the ESA (European Space Agency) constellation ? satellites 31 and 32. According to ESA, Galileo is "the world’s most precise satellite navigation system".

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The last time SpaceX launched Galileo satellites from Florida was back in late April, when SpaceX delivered satellites 29 and 30.

The Galileo system is comparable to GPS, providing navigational services for private and government use. According to ESA, it serves over four billion smartphone customers around the world. Most of the smartphones currently sold in Europe run the navigational service. Galileo is compatible with GPS and Glonass, which is the Russian navigational system.

Brooke Edwards is a Space Reporter for Florida Today. Contact her at [email protected] or on X: @brookeofstars.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: SpaceX Falcon 9 launches Galileo satellites from Cape Canaveral