SpaceX launched another big batch of its Starlink internet satellites toward orbit and landed the returning rocket on a ship at sea today (March 29).
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket topped with 56 Starlink satellites lifted off from Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station today at 4:01 p.m. EDT (2001 GMT).
The Falcon 9's first stage came back to Earth as planned, acing a vertical touchdown on the SpaceX droneship Just Read the Instructions about 8.5 minutes after launch.
Related: SpaceX's Starlink satellite megaconstellation launches in photos
It was the fourth launch and landing for this particular booster, SpaceX wrote in a mission description.
The Falcon 9's upper stage, meanwhile, continued hauling the Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit (LEO). It's scheduled to deploy all 56 satellites 65 minutes after liftoff.
Today's launch was the 21st for SpaceX in 2023 and the 11th this year devoted primarily to building out the company's Starlink broadband constellation.
SpaceX has now lofted more than 4,200 Starlink satellites overall, according to astrophysicist and satellite tracker Jonathan McDowell.
Those numbers will continue to grow far into the future; Elon Musk's company has permission to deploy 12,000 Starlink satellites in LEO and has applied for permission for another 30,000 on top of that.
Editor's note: This story was updated at 4:20 p.m. EDT on March 29 with news of successful launch and rocket landing.
Mike Wall is the author of "Out There" (Grand Central Publishing, 2018; illustrated by Karl Tate), a book about the search for alien life. Follow him on Twitter @michaeldwall. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom or on Facebook.
