SpaceX launches 100th orbital mission of 2026 with Starlink batch from California

SpaceX reached its 100th orbital launch of 2026 with a Starlink mission from California, a day after a Florida launch pushed the constellation past 11,000 satellites.

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SpaceX marked a milestone on Friday with its 100th orbital mission of 2026, launching another batch of Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Space Launch Complex 4E at 12:25 p.m. PDT (3:25 p.m. EDT / 0725 UTC) on August 21, carrying 29 Starlink satellites into orbit.

The mission, designated Starlink 15-20, came just one day after SpaceX launched its 75th Starlink mission of the year from Cape Canaveral, Florida. That flight, Starlink 10-39, added 29 satellites to the constellation and included the 2,000th Starlink satellite launched in 2026.

On Friday, Elon Musk confirmed that SpaceX now has more than 11,000 Starlink satellites in orbit, a figure that underscores the company's rapid deployment pace.

The booster for Friday's mission, B1100, was making its ninth flight, having previously launched the NROL-105 mission and seven Starlink batches. After stage separation, the booster targeted a landing on the droneship 'Of Course I Still Love You' in the Pacific Ocean, approximately 8.5 minutes after liftoff. If successful, it would be the 220th landing on that droneship and the 653rd Falcon booster landing overall.

Spaceflight Now's live coverage of the Vandenberg launch began about 30 minutes before liftoff.

Wednesday's Florida launch, which took place from Space Launch Complex 40 at 11:38 a.m. EDT (1538 UTC) on August 20, used booster B1078 on its 30th flight, making it the sixth booster to reach that milestone. The booster landed on the droneship 'A Shortfall of Gravitas' in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of South Carolina, about 8.5 minutes after liftoff. That landing, if successful, would be the 164th on that ship and the 652nd Falcon booster landing.

Launch weather officers from the 45th Weather Squadron had forecast an 80% chance of favorable conditions at the opening of the launch window, dropping to 40% later in the window. They noted, "The main concern at the beginning of the primary window will be violations associated with locally developing showers and storms along the sea breeze."

Spaceflight Now's coverage of the Florida mission began about an hour before liftoff.

With the two launches, SpaceX continues to demonstrate a high cadence of missions, with the Starlink program driving much of the activity.