The next sound growth of the day echoed across Florida’s Space Coast on April 21 as a Falcon 9 boost safely returned to Cape Canaveral after lifting off with the Bandwagon-3 carpooling mission, SpaceX’s next such launch offering tiny satellite deployment services.
The night liftoff at 8:48 am ET from Space Launch Complex 40 marked the next Falcon 9 launch of the day, following the week’s CRS-32 cargo vision to the International Space Station from Kennedy Space Center.
Within only time, SpaceX demonstrated its increasing start rhythm and flexibility.
Bandwagon-3 carried three commercial loads: 425Sat-3 from South Korea’s Agency for Protection Development ( ADD), Tomorrow-S7 by Tomorrow Companies Inc, and the Phoenix 1 rehabilitation spacecraft built by European strong Atmos Space Cargo.
These operations reflect the growing allure of SpaceX’s carpooling solutions, which offer cost-effective entry to orbit for little payloads without requiring full jet bookings.
According to Space. web, Phoenix 1 is the first rehabilitation capsule actually launched by a German company. It aims to test an inflated ambient decelerator during its returning journey, expected to burst down in the Atlantic about 1,200 yards off Brazil’s beach after a single circle.
Atmos Space Cargo called the objective a step toward “revolutionising place shipping ” and enabling “microgravity research, in-orbit production, security applications and life science. “
However, Tomorrow Companies Inc. is developing a dish star using AI and data to increase global climate resilience. Its Tomorrow-S7 load is component of that program. The details of its vision remain carefully kept, reported Fox 35 Orlando.
425Sat-3 forms part of South Korea’s broader 425 Project, which strengthens the land ’s military tracking capabilities.
After load rollout, the Falcon 9’s first-stage boost, flying for the next time after recently launching SES’s O3b mPOWER-E and Nasa’s Crew-10, returned to Landing Zone 2 at Cape Canaveral, triggering a acoustic boom that was heard across near areas, reported Florida Today.
The Bandwagon series began in April 2024 and has since expanded SpaceX’s ability to serve a variety of clients.
To date, the company has launched over 1,130 small satellites for 130 customers under its rideshare program. SpaceX also operates a separate Transporter line of rideshare missions, which began in 2021 and still holds the single-launch record of 143 satellites.
The next SpaceX launch from Cape Canaveral is scheduled for no earlier than April 24 at 9:32 pm ( local time ), carrying Starlink 6-74 internet satellites.
United Launch Alliance’s Amazon Kuiper mission is also slated for liftoff from the Cape no earlier than April 28.
