Starlink satellites lift off on SpaceX Falcon 9 from Cape Canaveral

a close-up of a payload fairing atop a rocket as it lifs off from its ocean-side launch pad

A SpaceX Falcon 9 carrying 29 Starlink satellites lifts off from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (Image credit: SpaceX)

SpaceX added 29 more Starlink satellites to its low Earth orbit megaconstellation today (Jan. 14).

A Falcon 9 rocket carrying the broadband internet relay units launched from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Wednesday. The rocket reached its preliminary orbit about nine minutes after the 1:08 p.m. EST (1808 GMT) liftoff.

The Falcon 9's upper stage was on track to deploy the Starlink satellites (Group 6-98) about an hour into the flight.

the first stage of an orbital rocket touches down on its four landing legs and the flames of its engine on a sea-based droneship — The first stage of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket touches down on the droneship "A Shortfall of Gravitas" in the Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (Image credit: SpaceX)

Booster 1085 missions

Meanwhile, the rocket's first stage (B1085) completed its 13th flight by performing a propulsive landing on the droneship "A Shortfall of Gravitas," which was stationed in Atlantic Ocean.

The additional satellites continue to grow the Starlink service's coverage, providing access to the internet in underserved areas. The network has nearly 9,500 active units, according to tracker Jonathan McDowell.

Wednesday's launch was SpaceX's sixth mission of 2026.

Robert Pearlman is a space historian, journalist and the founder and editor of collectSPACE.com, a daily news publication and community devoted to space history with a particular focus on how and where space exploration intersects with pop culture. Pearlman is also a contributing writer for Space.com and co-author of "Space Stations: The Art, Science, and Reality of Working in Space” published by Smithsonian Books in 2018.

In 2009, he was inducted into the U.S. Space Camp Hall of Fame in Huntsville, Alabama. In 2021, he was honored by the American Astronautical Society with the Ordway Award for Sustained Excellence in Spaceflight History. In 2023, the National Space Club Florida Committee recognized Pearlman with the Kolcum News and Communications Award for excellence in telling the space story along the Space Coast and throughout the world.

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