🚀 Falcon 9 | 🛰 Starlink 11-22
Launch date: June 4, 2025 23:40 UTC
Payload: Starlink 11-22
Location: Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E), Vandenberg Space Force Base, California
Vehicle: Falcon 9
On June 4, 2025, SpaceX launched its 500th orbital Falcon rocket, marking the 15th anniversary of the Falcon 9’s debut. Liftoff occurred at 23:40 UTC (4:40 p.m. PDT) from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base, carrying 27 Starlink v2 Mini satellites as the Group 11-22 mission—SpaceX’s 68th Falcon 9 launch and 50th Starlink mission of 2025. Veteran booster B1063, the oldest Falcon 9 in active service, completed its record-setting 26th flight and landed successfully on the droneship ‘Of Course I Still Love You.’ The upper stage continued on to deploy the satellites, which joined the Starlink megaconstellation to provide global internet connectivity. Local residents reported sonic booms in nearby counties; backup windows were available, and a live webcast was available via SpaceX’s X account. This milestone demonstrates SpaceX’s rapid rocket reuse capability and the steady expansion of the Starlink broadband constellation.
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SLC-4E, Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, USA
Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) is part of the larger Space Launch Complex 4 at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. Originally built as Launch Complex 75-1-2 and used by the U.S. Air Force for Atlas-Agena and Titan rockets in the 1960s and 1970s, it was later refurbished by SpaceX beginning in 2011. SpaceX rebuilt the facility to support Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launches aimed at sun-synchronous and polar orbits—trajectories best served from Vandenberg.
The first Falcon 9 launch from SLC-4E took place in September 2013. Since then, it has become SpaceX’s primary West Coast launch site, supporting both government and commercial payloads, including earth observation and reconnaissance satellites. In addition to supporting reusable launch vehicle operations, SLC-4E also hosts infrastructure for rocket landing and recovery, helping to advance SpaceX’s reusability efforts.