SpaceX launched its first Falcon 9 rocket of 2025 tonight, in what should be another busy year for the company.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket took off on Friday (Jan. 3) at 8:27 p.m. EST (0127 GMT) from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, launching the Thuraya 4 spacecraft to geosynchronous orbit.
Thuraya 4 is operated by Space42, a satellite and space services company based in the United Arab Emirates. The satellite will provide mobile communications services throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa for both commercial and government customers.
Eight minutes and 40 seconds after taking off, the Falcon 9 booster returned to Earth for a landing aboard SpaceX’s droneship “A Shortfall of Gravitas” offshore nearby in the Atlantic Ocean…