This week, a busy launch manifest saw SpaceX launch the Crew-10 and two Starlink missions from Florida and the delayed SPHEREx/PUNCH and Transporter 13 missions from California.
Outside of the United States, Rocket Lab flew an Electron from New Zealand. A Chang Zhang 8 rocket launched from a new commercial pad in China which also launched two other rockets. A Russian Angara rocket launched an unknown payload from Plesetsk.
A Chinese Chang Zheng 8 (CZ-8) rocket launched on Tuesday, March 11, at 16:40 UTC from the Commercial LC-1 pad at the Wenchang Space Launch Site in China. This launch marked the first launch from Commercial LC-1. CZ-8 flew on a southwesterly trajectory from Wenchang.
The payload is understood to be a batch of LEO communications satellites for the G60 constellation operated by Shanghai Spacecom Satellite Technology. CZ-8 consists of three stages and stands 50 m tall. This was the fifth CZ-8 mission and the second of 2025.
SpaceX launched two NASA science missions into Sun-synchronous orbit (SS), allowing for a more detailed study of the solar system and universe than ever before. The Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization, and Ices Explorer (SPHEREx) mission will examine the broader aspects of the universe to help address many unknowns in astrophysics, and the Polarimeter to Unify the Corona and Heliosphere (PUNCH) mission will investigate solar winds ejected from the Sun’s corona.
Following several significant delays, Falcon 9 was due to launch these two missions from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB) in California on Monday, March 10, at 8:09:57 PM PDT (03:09:57 UTC on March 11). This launch was scrubbed, sources citing weather and a spacecraft issue. The missions finally launched at the next launch opportunity on Tuesday, March 11 at 8:10 PM EDT (03:10 UTC on March 12).
Falcon 9 booster B1088 launched the telescopes to a 700 km SSO. Following liftoff, the booster landed at Landing Zone 4 (LZ-4), completing its third mission.
One of SPHEREx’s main objectives is to investigate “cosmic inflation”– a phenomenon that occurred less than a second after the Big Bang and is responsible for the universe’s expansion into a flat plane rather than a perfect sphere. Cosmic inflation also clarifies why pockets of highly dense material could coalesce in some regions of the universe, forming galaxies. Astrophysicists can use the data from SPHEREx to piece together the puzzle of how the universe was formed.
SPHEREx will measure the total glow from all galaxies, including those too small or distant for other telescopes to detect easily. This will help astrophysicists better understand the universe’s overall size and density. An additional objective for SPHEREx is to search for essential building blocks of life within the Milky Way. The telescope is designed to detect frozen oxygen and water molecules in interstellar clouds where stars and planets form. This could help identify regions of the universe that are abundant in these molecules, which are more likely to support life as we know it.
The PUNCH mission is comprised of four suitcase-sized small satellites intended to study the Sun’s corona, the formation of solar wind, and solar winds’ effects on the heliosphere. There are several theories on how solar wind is formed, mainly focusing on the expansion of plasma that was heated and given enough energy to break free of the Sun’s gravity and flow along the magnetic fields of the Sun. PUNCH will help confirm this theory and investigate the origins and evolution of solar wind.
NASA, SpaceX launch SPHEREx observatory and PUNCH heliophysics mission from California
This mission will also help track coronal mass ejections, which could pose risks to Earth or in-orbit missions. The four satellites will work together to create the most expansive field of view of the sky of any Sun-focused mission, helping broaden our knowledge of the Sun and finding ways to keep future satellites safer from coronal ejections.
Falcon 9 | Starlink Group 12-21
Following several abandoned launch attempts, the first Starlink mission of this week launched on Wednesday, March 12, at 10:35:30 PM EDT (02:35:30 on March 13 UTC) from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) in Florida.
This mission placed 21 Starlink v2 Mini satellites into a 284 by 294-km low-Earth orbit (LEO) inclined by 43 degrees. 13 of the 21 satellites are equipped with Direct-to-Cell capabilities.
The booster supporting this mission was B1069, which landed successfully on SpaceX’s autonomous droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas, positioned 600 km downrange in the Atlantic.
B1069 was flying for the 22nd time, having first flown in December 2021, and on its second flight of 2025. The booster has previously flown 16 Starlink missions and five customer missions.
The next crew rotation for the International Space Station (ISS) commenced on Friday, March 14, at 7:03 PM EDT (23:03 UTC), with the liftoff of Crew-10.
Launch was originally planned for Wednesday, March 12, at 7:48:56 PM EDT (23:48:56 UTC). This launch attempt was scrubbed a little under 45 minutes before the scheduled liftoff time. The scrub was caused by an air pocket in the hydraulics systems that control the clamp near the top of the strongback. The clamp had to release the vehicle before liftoff, and the air pocket had to be flushed to clear the fault.
LAUNCH! CREW-10 SpaceX Falcon 9 B1090-2 launches Crew Dragon Endurance to the ISS with a crew of four.
Overview:https://t.co/iiKXmuXrhR
LIVE:https://t.co/FeYStNOijH pic.twitter.com/7IvPmx4Jbd
— NSF – NASASpaceflight.com (@NASASpaceflight) March 14, 2025
NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov flew from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
A dedicated launch article has been written for this mission by Haygen Warren for NSF.
Falcon 9 booster B1090 made its second flight, having previously flown the O3b mPOWER 7&8 mission in December 2024. Following launch and separation from the second stage, the booster landed successfully at Landing Zone 1 (LZ-1) at CCSFS.
Crew Dragon C210 Endurance is supporting Crew-10, flying to space for the fourth time. The capsule previously supported the Crew-3, Crew-5, and Crew-7 missions to the ISS. Endurance had been scheduled for the next Axiom crewed mission, but delays with the production of SpaceX’s fifth Crew Dragon, which was expected to be ready for Crew-10, have led to the missions exchanging Crew Dragons.
Endurance docked autonomously with the ISS on Sunday, March 16, at 04:04 UTC. Crew-9 will depart the ISS to complete the crew rotation, with Crew Dragon Freedom expected to undock on Wednesday, March 19, at 12:00 UTC.
Rocket Lab launched its third mission of 2025 on Saturday, March 15, at 00:00 UTC from Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 1B (LC-1B) at the Māhia Peninsula in New Zealand. The mission, titled “The Lightning God Reigns,” deployed iQPS’s synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites into LEO. These satellites are designed to capture high-resolution images of Earth. iQPS aims to have 24 of these satellites in orbit by 2027.
LAUNCH! Rocket Lab Electron joins the fun with 'The Lightning God Reigns' mission.
Overview:https://t.co/6Si09egzPs
RL Stream:https://t.co/idPkGWUKEK pic.twitter.com/DyTSKaQ1ia
— NSF – NASASpaceflight.com (@NASASpaceflight) March 15, 2025
This was the first of eight Electron launches to carry iQPS’s SAR satellites. This collaboration with Rocket Lab will help fill out the constellation to 36 satellites. This launch had been delayed several times, with Rocket Lab citing “customer requirements” for the delays, as well as vehicle checkouts.
Chang Zheng 2D | SuperView Neo 3-02
A commercial Earth observation satellite was launched by a Chinese CZ-2D rocket from Site 9401 at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in China. Liftoff occured on Saturday, March 15, at 04:11 UTC.
Hazard warning notices indicate that a southwesterly trajectory would be flown.The payload – SuperView Neo 3-02 – was built by CAST for the Chaina Siwei Survey and Napping Technology Co. Ltd. A second payload Tianyan 23 was aboard as a rideshare.
The CZ-2D rocket has two stages and measures 40.77 meters in height.
SpaceX’s Transporter 13 rideshare mission launched on Friday, March 14, at 11:43 PM PDT (06:43 UTC on March 15) from SLC-4E in California.
LAUNCH! SpaceX Falcon 9 B1081-13 launches with over 70 payloads on the Transporter-13 mission.
Overview:https://t.co/ETKRutReeX
Live: https://t.co/S2cQQBrlHf pic.twitter.com/OZ2qdO5Uc8
— NSF – NASASpaceflight.com (@NASASpaceflight) March 15, 2025
The mission is a part of SpaceX’s Transporter rideshare program that facilitates the transportation of payloads from various providers to SSO. Over 60 satellites are anticipated to be deployed during this mission. These missions allow smaller satellite providers to launch satellites into space at a relatively low cost of $300,000 for up to 50 kg to SSO. An in-depth article covering this mission has been written by Danny Lentz for NASASpaceflight.
The booster for this mission was B1081, flying for the thirteenth time. Following the launch, the booster returned to the launch site and landed successfully at LZ-4, allowing for a more rapid refurbishment before its next mission.
Booster B1081 has previously flown Crew-7, CRS-29, Starlink Group 6-34, PACE, Transporter 10, Starlink Group 8-1, EarthCARE, NROL-186, Starlink Group 9-5, Starlink Group 9-10, and Starlink Group 9-14. The booster’s first flight was on Sept. 26, 2023.
Recovery vessel Go Beyond is stationed downrange and will suport the recovery and return to port of the two fairing halves after the launch. Both fairing halves have been flown on previous missions.
Starlink Group 12-16 with a sunrise launch from SLC-40 (Credit: Julia Bergeron for NSF)
Space X Falcon 9 | Starlink Group 12-16
A second Starlink mission launched atop a Falcon 9 from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) on Saturday, March 15 at 7:35 AM EDT (11:35 UTC). The payload includes 10 Starlink v2 Mini satellites, and 13 having Direct-to-Cell capabilities. The rocket flew on a southeasterly trajectory, to a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) inclined by 43 degrees.
The mission plan is similar to Starlink Group 12-21, which launched on Wednesday. This launch follows the fastest turnaround of a SpaceX pad to date at 2 days, 8 hours, and 59 minutes, and 30 seconds, breaking the previous record, set by SLC-40 at 2 days, 15 hours, and 53 minutes (Starlink Group 12-14). This is an incredible turnaround time for the pad, partly driven by SpaceX currently reserving Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) for its upcoming Crew-10 crewed mission to the International Space Station (ISS).
The booster for this mission is B1078, which landed successfully on Just Read The Instructions, one of the two east coast droneships downrange in the Atlantic Ocean.
Booster B1078 was flying its 18th mission, having previously flown Crew-6, O3b mPower 3 & 4, Starlink Group 6-4, Starlink Group 6-8, Starlink Group 6-16, Starlink Group 6-31, USSF-124, Starlink Group 6-46, Starlink Group 6-53, Starlink Group 6-60, Starlink Group 10.2, Starlink Group 10-6, Bluebird-1, Starlink Group 10-13, Starlink Group 6-76, Starlink Group 12-6, and Starlink Group 12-9. This Falcon’s first flight was on March 2, 2023. This is it’s second flight of 2025.
Russia was expected to launch an unknown military payload into orbit atop an Angara 1.2 rocket from Site 35/1 at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome. Liftoff was expected at 10:50 UTC, within a launch window that opened on Saturday, March 15, from 10:30 to 11:30 UTC, but this launch attempt was scrubbed.
A further launch attempt succeeded at the same time on Sunday, March 16.
The Angara 1.2 measures 2.9 m in diameter and 42.7 m tall. The rocket features two stages, with the first stage, a Universal Rocket Module 1 (URM-1), being powered by an Energomash RD-191 engine. The engine uses kerosene and liquid oxygen propellants. The second stage, a Universal Rocket Module 2 (URM-2, uses the same propellants and an RD-0124A closed-cycle engine. This was the fifth flight of the Angara 1.2 and the first of 2025.
Another Chinese mission launched on Monday, March 17, at 08:07 UTC. The Ceres 1 rocket lifted off from Site 95A, Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre, China, and flew on a southwesterly trajectory. The payload was 8 satellites hich were inserted into SSO at 535 km altitude. The satellites were Yuntao-1 #55 to 60, and AIRSAT-06 & 07. The mission was named “Auld Lang Syne”
Ceres 1 has four stages and can delivery 400 kg to LEO. The rocket stands at 19 meters high.
(Lead image: A Falcon 9 launches from LC-39A. Credit: Sawyer Rosenstein for NSF)
