SpaceX Falcon 9 to launch Maxar 1 mission from California today

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying two Maxar Earth-observation satellites is scheduled to launch Thursday, May 2, from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The mission will lift off at 11:36 a.m. PT.

The two satellites aboard the Falcon 9 are part of the WorldView Legion satellite constellation. These are the first duo in a planned constellation of six satellites aimed at enhancing Maxar Intelligence's constellation by delivering industry-leading resolution and accuracy.

"WorldView Legion will extend the quality and capability of our industry-leading constellation, redefining Earth observation constellation performance and providing customers with unprecedented access to timely, actionable insights that help drive mission success," said Dan Smoot, Maxar Intelligence CEO.

We’re hours from the launch of our first two WorldView Legion satellites, which will increase the 30 cm-class resolution imagery we collect for customers! Launch window opens at 11:36 a.m. PT today. Broadcast will be on https://t.co/GZyTINsDfr and on https://t.co/KS0EnTAs8p.… pic.twitter.com/Ui8RGQxfkb

— Maxar Technologies (@Maxar) May 2, 2024

SpaceX will host a live webcast starting approximately 15 minutes before liftoff. 

The Maxar 1 mission marks the 20th flight for this Falcon 9 first stage booster, which previously launched Crew-1, Crew-2, SXM-8, CRS-23, IXPE, Transporter-4, Transporter-5, Globalstar FM15, ISI EROS C-3, Korea 425, and nine Starlink missions. After stage separation, the first stage will land on Landing Zone 4 (LZ-4) at Vandenberg Space Force Base.