SpaceX is setting up to launch its 50th Falcon 9 rocket, with a payload that also represents a new milestone. The two-hour launch window is set to begin at 12:33 AM EST (9:33 PM PST) so it’s a late one, but if you’re a fan of watching SpaceX make history, this is one to watch.
The Falcon 9 launching tonight is carrying Hispasat 30W-6, a satellite destined for Geostationary Transfer Orbit. It’s the largest satellite SpaceX has ever delivered to geostationary orbit, with a total weight of six metric tons and a physical footprint nearly the size of a city bus, according to SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.
Hispasat is a spanish satellite company, and SpaceX previously launched a payload to be operated by them on its recent mission that also included SpaceX’s very first own demonstration satellites for its eventual global broadband internet service.
SpaceX won’t be attempting a recovery of this rocket, in this case because of inclement weather off the coast of Florida in the Atlantic. The launch itself will take off from SpaceX’s SLC-40 launch complex at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. If it’s scrubbed for any reason, there’s a backup opportunity that kicks off at 12:33 AM EST on Wednesday March 7.