Elon Musk’s SpaceX (NASDAQ:SPCX) launched two Falcon 9 rockets just 38.5 minutes apart on Saturday night, a doubleheader Space.com described as a new record for the shortest time between orbital flights.
The company’s previous mark of 65 minutes was set in August 2024, meaning Saturday’s missions cut roughly 27 minutes off the old record.
SpaceX Launches From Opposite Coasts 38 Minutes Apart
The first Falcon 9 lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 9:12 p.m. EDT, carrying eight satellites for telecom company Globalstar Inc. (NASDAQ:GSAT).
At roughly 9:50 p.m. EDT, a second Falcon 9 launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California with USSF-366, a classified mission for the U.S. Space Force.
The gap was so short that the first rocket had not yet released its payload when the second left the pad.
Traders Bet SpaceX Tops 150 Launches This Year
Prediction market traders expect another huge year from SpaceX. The company conducted a record 170 launches in 2025. Kalshi currently prices a roughly 78% chance the company will top 150 again in 2026, while putting the odds of exceeding 160 at around 34%.
SpaceX is also preparing for the next Starship test flight, a key step in the company’s effort to dramatically increase how much cargo it can carry to orbit.
Musk said earlier this month that SpaceX is aiming to launch Starship Flight 14 before the end of August. Kalshi traders are more skeptical, putting the odds of a launch before Sept. 1 at just 7%, compared with 84% before Sept. 18.
Musk’s Launch Machine Hits 650 Booster Landings
Both first-stage boosters from Saturday’s flights were recovered successfully. The Globalstar booster landed at Cape Canaveral after its 14th flight, while the USSF-366 booster touched down on a SpaceX recovery ship in the Pacific after its 18th.
That second landing marked SpaceX’s 650th Falcon booster recovery, according to Spaceflight Now. The two missions were also the company’s 95th and 96th Falcon 9 launches of 2026.
Roughly 75% of this year’s Falcon 9 missions have carried Starlink satellites, according to Space.com, helping expand a broadband constellation that now numbers nearly 11,000 spacecraft. Space.com notes that SpaceX now launches far more frequently than any other operator.
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