SpaceX plans to launch Falcon 9 carrying two Maxar Earth-observation satellites from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral tomorrow morning. The launch window opens at 09:00 AM EDT and closes at 12:00 PM the same day.

Booster B1076 has been assigned to the mission, and it will be making its 16th flight. This will be a Return To Landing Site Mission, meaning there will be a sonic boom heard across the Space Coast as the booster returns to land.

At A Glance

• Mission: Legion Worldview 3 & 4
• Date: NET August 11, 2024
• Launch Window: 09:00 AM – 12:00 PM EDT*
• Weather: 80% Go during the primary launch window
• Organization: SpaceX
• Rocket: Falcon 9
• Trajectory: Northeast
• Launch Site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
• Booster Landing: LZ-1 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
• Payload: two Maxar Earth-Observation Satellites
• Destination: LEO
  
  ^{* consult SpaceX website for the specific target for T-0.}

Payload

Two Maxar WorldView Earth-observation satellites.

Weather

The 45th Weather Squadron’s forecast has a 20% chance of a weather-related range violation, meaning that weather is 80% go. They do have concerns about cumulus clouds in the flight path as well as an additional risk of upper-level windshear.

All in all, this is a great forecast for July in Florida.

Trajectory

Northeastwards

Online Viewing

SpaceCoastLaunchCalendar.com will have a livestream of the launch if you’re not able to watch the launch in person: Livestream

SpaceX will have a livestream of the launch on their website: Maxar 2 Mission. This will also be available on the X platform. Coverage starts about fifteen minutes before liftoff.

Spaceflight Now will have coverage of the launch starting about one hour before liftoff on Youtube: link

For official updates regarding launch times, SpaceX.com is the best source of information. Starlink launch times change from time to time, and the company generally updates their website within minutes of the decision to change the launch time. This is very handy if none of the streaming options on YouTube have started their broadcasts.

Remember that there is a delay between a launch stream and the actual countdown clock. That is simply because of physics: it takes time for the signal to travel from the launch site, through the Internet, and back down to your phone, resulting in a five to fifteen-second delay.

Next Space Flight an app for iOS and Android phones, has a real-time countdown clock that is accurate to a second, give or take. The app is free. Search the App Store or Google Play. They are also on the web: nextspaceflight.com.

Launch Viewing: In Person

If there is a launch that you really want to head to Jetty Park to see, this is one of them. While Jetty Park has an indirect view of liftoff (you won’t see the rocket until it clears the berm on the CCSFS side of the port) but you will get as good a view of the landing sequence as there is, on or off the base. Go early if you plan to view it from there, and then keep in mind that you must pay your entrance fee in advance.

Purchase a Port Canaveral Parking Pass

Otherwise, the usual Space Launch Complex 40 viewing sites are quite good as well: the Banana River Bridge on FL 528W, Cocoa Beach, and the southern Titusville parks on Washington Avenue.

Keep in mind it will get progressively warmer as morning progresses, so be prepared with cold drinks, sunscreen and maybe even bug spray, just in case.