Payload
The mission’s primary payload is the Nusantara Satu communications satellite for Indonesian telecommunications provider Pasifik Satelit Nusantara. The satellite will provide data and voice coverage to South East Asia and the Indonesian archipelago. In addition to the primary payload, the mission will deploy two smaller payloads, the world’s first privately funded lunar lander, Israel’s Beresheet and an experimental small satellite or the U.S. Air Force Research Lab. Read more
Rocket
The Falon 9 rocket is the primary vehicle of the privately owned US launch provider SpaceX. The two-stage rocket was first launched on June 4, 2010. Its first stage is powered by 9 Merlin 1D+ engines and is capable of returning to Earth and landing vertically. The rocket’s second stage is powered by a single Merlin 1D Vacuum+ engine with a burn time of 397 seconds. Read more
The Falcon 9 Block 5 first stage being used for today’s launch (B1048.3) has been recovered twice before. It was used to launch the Iridium-7 mission in July 2018 and the SAOCOM 1a mission in October 2018. Both previous launches were from Vandenberg with today’s launch the first time it will be launched from the Cape.
Launch facility
Construction of the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station began in 1940. The first rocket was launched from the site in 1948 and the facility been used continuously ever since. SpaceX won the lease for the Cape’s Launch Complex 40 in 2007. The company has used the facility to launch over 40 missions since. Read more
