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SpaceX’s Falcon 9 sends up Thuraya 4 for the first launch of the new year

Success for SpaceX as Falcon 9 launched the Space42 Thuraya 4 mission to a geosynchronous transfer orbit from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 8:27 p.m. ET. This was the first launch for Falcon 9 in the new year, and was the 20th flight and recovery for this Falcon 9 first stage booster, and SpaceX’s 341st recovery of an orbital-class rocket. All photos by Satnews.

Successful separation and send off of Thruaya 4-NGS

Based on the all-electric Airbus Eurostar-Neo Platform, Thuraya 4-NGS will incorporate a large 12-meter L-band antenna and a payload with on-board processing providing advanced routing flexibility of up to 3200 channels with dynamic power allocation over a large number of spot beams.

Space 42’s Thuraya 4 mission is operated in conjunction with Yahsat, a global satellite company based in the United Arab Emirates. The Thuraya 4 is a communications satellite that will operate in geosynchronous orbit, about 23,000 miles above the Earth’s surface.

SpaceX Thuraya 4 mission now on for Friday

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SpaceX is targeting Friday, January 3 for Falcon 9’s launch of the Space42 Thuraya 4 mission to a geosynchronous transfer orbit from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The four-hour window opens at 8:27 p.m. ET. If needed, a backup opportunity is available on Saturday, January 4 at the same time.

SpaceX has delayed the launch of its Thuraya 4 mission from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida until Friday, the company announced on its website Thursday.

Space 42’s Thuraya 4 mission is operated in conjunction with Yahsat, a global satellite company based in the United Arab Emirates. The Thuraya 4 is a communications satellite that will operate in geosynchronous orbit, about 23,000 miles above the Earth’s surface.

A live webcast of this mission will begin about 15 minutes prior to liftoff, which you can watch on X @SpaceX. You can also watch the webcast on the new X TV app.

This will be the 20th flight for the Falcon 9 first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched SES-22, ispace’s HAKUTO-R MISSION 1, Amazonas-6, CRS-27, Bandwagon-1, GSAT-20, and 13 Starlink missions. After stage separation, the first stage will land on the A Shortfall of Gravitas droneship, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.

SpaceX to launch Thuraya 4-NGS on Thursday

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SpaceX is scheduled to launch Thuraya 4-NGS at 5:27 PM – 9:53 PM PST from Space Launch complex 40, at Cape Canaveral, Florida. Thuraya 4-NGS is a communication satellite being built by Airbus Defense and Space for the UAE based Yahsat. The launch cost is $69.75 million. Image by Airbus.

Based on the all-electric Airbus Eurostar-Neo Platform, Thuraya 4-NGS will incorporate a large 12-meter L-band antenna and a payload with on-board processing providing advanced routing flexibility of up to 3200 channels with dynamic power allocation over a large number of spot beams.

According to weather officials, there’s a 99% chance of favorable weather conditions at the time of the launch. The forecast calls for a temperature of 59°F, overcast clouds, 100% cloud cover and a wind speed of 12mph.