SpaceX Transporter-9 Rideshare Mission Launches 90 Payloads To Orbit, Including Foxconn's Prototype Satellites

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base at 1849 UTC on Saturday (Nov. 11), carrying 90 payloads into orbit, in the company's 9th dedicated 'rideshare' mission, Transporter-9.

The Falcon 9's reusable first stage returned to Earth at Vandenberg about 7.5 minutes after liftoff; the 12th launch and landing for this particular booster, according to a SpaceX. The payloads deployed into low Earth orbit over one hour after liftoff.

The payloads are from a variety of different customers, and include "cubesats, microsats, and orbital transfer vehicles carrying spacecraft to be deployed at a later time," according to SpaceX.

The payloads also include two prototype low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites from Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Foxconn. The Apple iPhone maker is seeking to expand into new sectors like satellite technology to cater to increasing demand for space-based communication systems.

Transporter-9 is the 82nd orbital mission for SpaceX in 2023, extending the company's record for a single year. While ninety payloads is a hefty number for Saturday's mission, it isn't close to a record for SpaceX. Transporter-1 holds the mark, sending 143 satellites to orbit in January 2021. And Transporter-6, which lifted off this past January, carried 114 satellites.

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