Photo: Ryan Bale // CRS-14
In just under a half hour, SpaceX is launching the JCSAT-18/Kacific1 mission for SKY Perfect JSAT. At 7:10pm ET, the Falcon 9 rocket will launch from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral, Florida on a twice flown first stage booster, previously launching the CRS-17 and CRS-18 missions for NASA. After launch, the first stage will perform a landing on the droneship “Of Course I Still Love You” and the two fairing halves will be caught by the 2 recovery ships, “Ms. Tree” and “Ms. Chief”.
The satellite on today’s mission will provide Ku-band coverage and improve mobile and broadband services for customers of the SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation in Asia. This is a next-generation Geostationary satellite that will help connect previously unserved populations with high-speed broadband that is more affordable.
The livestream can be watched here and will begin approximately 15 minutes prior to liftoff. Weather is currently 90% go, clear skies at the cape.