Elon Musk owned SpaceX achieves the world record using its Falcon 9 rocket to send 143 spacecraft to orbit as part of SmallSat Rideshare Programme
It is gaga time for mercurial entrepreneur Elon Musk as his space company SpaceX became the first organisation in the world to send the maximum number of satellites to orbit with a single mission using its Falcon 9 rocket on Sunday night.
SpaceX achieved this world record as its Falcon 9 launched 143 spacecraft to orbit as part of the company’s first dedicated SmallSat Rideshare Programme mission. According to SpaecX sources, the record mission of the company ended with a successful landing and recovery of the Falcon 9 rocket’s first-stage booster in the Atlantic ocean.
The mission achieved the record as it splits up the payload capacity of its rocket among multiple worldwide customers. It really reduced the overall cost for each of the satellites launched to the orbit. But at the same it provided SpaceX with a full launch and all the revenue it requires to justify lauding one of its vehicles.
Among the total 143 satellites, SpaceX launched 133 from various companies who booked rides and the rest from its own company Starlink satellites. It is interesting to note that Startlink sent more than 1,000 satellites to orbit for its ambitious broadband communication network project.
SpaceX company sources said the launch had customers like Planet Labs, which sent up 48 SuperDove Earth imaging satellites, Swarm which is into IoT communication and Kepler. SpaceX started rideshare model primarily to help new age space startup to expand their foot print with on-orbit satellite constellations for their various business.
