SpaceX scrubs Falcon 9 launch of Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stands ready to launch the Starlink 7-14 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base. Image: SpaceX

Update: 8:15 p.m. EST: SpaceX scrubbed the launch Wednesday evening.

SpaceX wasn’t able to keep the love of Falcon 9 flights going this Valentine’s Day with a launch launching from California. The company scrubbed the launch attempt of the Starlink 7-14 mission.

The next available opportunity for the Falcon 9 rocket supporting this mission to launch begins at 1:34 p.m. PST (4:34 p.m. EST, 2134 UTC). A reason for the scrub has not been provided by SpaceX.

Spaceflight Now will have live coverage on Launchpad Live starting about 30 minutes before liftoff.

This latest Starlink mission comes sandwiched between two marquee missions for SpaceX: the USSF-124 mission, arranged by the U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command, and the IM-1 mission, a robotic lunar lander from Houston-based Intuitive Machines.

The former launched successfully from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 5:30 p.m. EST (2230 UTC) and the latter is aiming to launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center at 1:05 a.m EST (0605 UTC) on Thursday, Feb. 15.

The Starlink 7-14 mission is set to be the 299th Falcon 9 launch to date and the 9th dedicated Starlink launch of 2024. Following stage separation, the first stage booster, tail number B1082, will land on the droneship, ‘Of Course I Still Love You,’ which is staged out in the Pacific Ocean.