Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (NASDAQ:SPCX) is winding down Starlink launches on the Falcon 9 rocket on the East Coast as the company prepares to shift to the Starship rocket.
Falcon 9 Will Continue From Vandenberg
In a post on X on Tuesday, SpaceX’s VP of Launch, Kiko Dontchev, confirmed the move, saying that the launch mission from “pad 40 was the last planned Falcon 9 Starlink launch from Florida.” Dontchev added that it was “the end of an era” for the launches and confirmed that “Starlink missions out of Florida will fly on Starship.”
Dontchev also said that the West Coast team would “continue regularly launching Starlink from Vandenberg” and that he was “super proud” of the team that made “Falcon 9 the most reliable launch vehicle in history.” Dontchev hailed the Starlink satellite internet network.
On Tuesday, the Falcon 9 launched 29 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, marking the final planned Falcon 9 Starlink mission from the East Coast.
Elon Musk Touts Starbase Louisiana
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk reaffirmed predictions about galaxy-level expansions as SpaceX unveiled plans for the Starbase site in Louisiana. He predicted that roughly 1 million Optimus units and 1 GW of solar power would help with the creation of the first Von Neumann probe, a machine that will be capable of replicating itself using the locally available resources on distant stars and planets.
Musk had earlier said SpaceX planned to attempt its first tower catch of Starship’s upper stage during Flight 14, but he has since pushed that attempt back by several months. SpaceX is also targeting 10,000 launches annually for the Starship rocket by the end of the decade.
Space Stocks
Space stocks have showcased growth over the past month, with SpaceX growing 19.88% to $137.95 at market close on Tuesday, while surging 0.15% during overnight trading to $138.16 on Tuesday. AST SpaceMobile Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS) recorded a 10.34% surge in the past month. It is currently trading at $62.01.
On the other hand, Rocket Lab Corporation (NASDAQ:RKLB), despite its surge earlier this month, has recorded a 4.69% surge in the past month and is trading at $67.18 during overnight trading on Tuesday.
On the other hand, Firefly Aerospace Inc. (NASDAQ:FLY) grew 13.05% in the past month and currently trades at $22.37 during overnight trading, despite a more than 3.5% decline on Tuesday.
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