SpaceX - Falcon 9 - Starlink 12-6 - LC-39A - Kennedy Space Center - December 31, 2024

Launch Date: December 31, 2024
Launch Time: 12:39 a.m. ET, 0539 UTC, 06:39 CET
Launch Window: up til 1:28 a.m.
Launch Site: LC-39A - Kennedy Space Center, Florida
Targeted Orbit: Low Earth Orbit (LEO)
Launch Inclination: Southeast
Launch Status: Nominal Parking Orbit

Mission: Starlink Group 12-6
Launch Provider: SpaceX
Launcher System: Falcon 9
Flight for the Booster: 16
Previous Flights: 15 - Crew-6, BlueBird-1, USSF-124, mPOWER-B, and 11 Starlink missions
Droneship: Just Read the Instructions (JRTI)

Price: $69,75 million (without payload)
Diameter: 3,7 meters
Height: 70 meters
Payload to Orbit: 22,800 LEO / 8,300 GTO
Lift-Off Thrust: 7,607 Kilonnewtons
Fairing: Diameter 5,2 meter / Height 13 meter
Stages: 2

Countdown
Hr/Min/Sec Event
00:38:00 SpaceX Launch Director verifies go for propellant load
00:35:00 RP-1 (rocket grade kerosene) loading begins
00:35:00 1st stage LOX (liquid oxygen) loading begins
00:16:00 2nd stage LOX loading begins
00:07:00 Falcon 9 begins engine chill prior to launch
00:01:00 Command flight computer to begin final prelaunch checks
00:01:00 Propellant tank pressurization to flight pressure begins
00:00:45 SpaceX Launch Director verifies go for launch
00:00:03 Engine controller commands engine ignition sequence to start
00:00:00 Falcon 9 liftoff

Launch, Landing, and Deployment
All Times Approximate
Hr/Min/Sec Event
00:01:10 Max Q (Moment of peak mechanical stress on the rocket)
00:02:24 1st stage main engine cutoff (MECO)
00:02:28 1st and 2nd stages separate
00:02:35 2nd stage engine starts (SES-1)
00:03:01 Fairing deployment
00:06:05 1st stage entry burn begins
00:06:33 1st stage entry burn ends
00:07:51 1st stage landing burn begins
00:08:16 1st stage landing
00:08:38 2nd stage engine cutoff (SECO-1)
00:54:03 2nd stage engine starts (SES-2)
00:54:04 2nd stage engine cutoff (SECO-2)
01:05:11 Starlink satellites deploy

SpaceX targets December 31 for a Falcon 9 launch of 23 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit from LC-39 A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Liftoff is targeted for 12:39 a.m. ET, 0539 UTC, 06:34 CET, with backup opportunities available until 1:28 a.m. ET.

This is the 16th flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched Crew-6, BlueBird-1, USSF-124, mPOWER-B, and 11 Starlink missions. Following stage separation, the first stage will land on the Just Read the Instructions droneship, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.

You will find more information about the trajectory and data on the day of the launch here: https://flightclub.io/live