SpaceX on Wednesday launched a new GPS satellite into orbit on behalf of the US military that will power smartphone apps, military operations and more. Continuous efforts to strengthen global positioning and navigation constellation.
The GPS satellite was launched at 7:24 a.m. EST aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Force Base in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
SpaceX has confirmed that the satellite has been prepared and arranged.
The mission launched the sixth of a new generation of GPS satellites, called GPS III, into orbit about 12,550 miles (20,200 km) above Earth's surface, and more than 30 GPS satellites are currently active. They orbit the planet approximately every 12 hours and continuously emit radio signals to determine the exact location of objects on the ground.
The next generation of GPS III satellites, made by Lockheed Martin, will upgrade the system with plans to build 32 satellites, including six launched after 2019.
The GPS service is commonly used on smartphones, but Lockheed Martin mentions on its website that it is also used for military purposes.
"The space has become a very competitive environment where competitors compete with each other.
Previous generations of GPS satellites came into use in the late 1990s.
After the Falcon 9 is launched from Cape Canaveral and uses up most of its fuel, the first stage (the large lower part that provides the initial launch shock) separates from the second stage of the rocket and satellite and launches it into the sea.
It's a routine maneuver for SpaceX to regularly repair and reuse rockets to keep costs down.
The first stage of the booster rocket used Wednesday launched a SpaceX Crew-5 mission that previously delivered four astronauts to the International Space Station in October 2022
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