SpaceX Rocket Launches Five Communication Satellites into Orbit

A Falcon 9 rocket launched five American BlueBird satellites from telecommunications company AST SpaceMobile into orbit on Thursday, SpaceX, the launch vehicle’s developer, said.

“The launch of all five BlueBird satellites has been confirmed,” the statement said.

On 10 April 2018, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird 1-5 mission. The Falcon 9’s first stage returned safely to Earth after approximately 7.5 minutes, marking the 13th launch and landing for that particular stage. The Falcon 9’s second stage placed the BlueBird satellites into low Earth orbit and successfully deployed the constellation 54 minutes after liftoff.

The five 1,500-kilogram BlueBird satellites launched will form the basis of a space constellation designed to directly transmit communications services to mobile phones. Each BlueBird satellite is equipped with an antenna whose area when deployed is a record 64 m2, making it the largest antenna ever deployed by a commercial spacecraft.

The satellites are designed to provide mobile communications services. The company plans to launch 243 devices into orbit.