SpaceX sends 26 Starlink satellites to orbit on landmark launch

SpaceX reached a major milestone with the 500th mission of its Falcon rocket family on June 12. A Falcon 9 launched 26 Starlink satellites from California’s Vandenberg Space Force Base, successfully deploying them into low Earth orbit. The rocket’s first stage landed on the droneship Of Course I Still Love You, marking its 15th reuse, Space.com has reported. This was SpaceX’s 72nd Falcon 9 launch of 2025, 54 of which supported the Starlink internet constellation, now the world’s largest satellite network with over 7,600 active satellites.