SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026, carrying eight Globalstar replenishment satellites to low Earth orbit — and paired it with a Vandenberg launch that lifted off just 38 minutes later, a new SpaceX record for cadence across coasts.
Globalstar 2R Launch 1
The mission, dubbed Globalstar 2R Launch 1, lifted off at 9:12 p.m. EDT (0112 UTC) from Space Launch Complex 40, with satellite deployment beginning 56 minutes into flight and wrapping in under 10 minutes. Weather cooperated: the 45th Weather Squadron gave an eyeball 90 percent go, with only isolated anvil and cumulus cloud risk on the coast.
Booster B1090's 14th Flight
Falcon 9 first stage B1090 flew for the 14th time and targeted a return-to-launch-site touchdown at Landing Zone 40 about eight minutes after liftoff. If successful, it marks the fifth landing at LZ-40 and the 649th Falcon booster recovery for SpaceX.
Doubleheader Record
Less than 40 minutes after the Cape Canaveral liftoff, a second Falcon 9 rose from Vandenberg Space Force Base with SpaceX's USSF-366 mission for the U.S. Space Force. The 38-minute gap set a new SpaceX record for launches from opposite coasts and pushed the year-to-date Falcon 9 tally to 85 flights, extending the run of pace-setting cadence in 2026 that also included a Rocket Lab warning that its Neutron debut could now slip into 2027.
Constellation Refresh Amid Amazon Deal
Globalstar CEO Dr. Paul Jacobs called the launch "another important step in sustaining and strengthening the infrastructure our customers rely on every day." The launch also lands with Amazon's proposed acquisition of Globalstar in the background — a deal that would fold the low-Earth-orbit constellation into Amazon's Kuiper-adjacent Leo unit and add direct-to-device capabilities to its satellite offering. Globalstar said Aug. 6 that it would stop holding earnings calls while the deal is pending, with closing expected in 2027. The satellite operator also underpins the emergency SOS feature Apple licenses for the iPhone — a service that has taken on new prominence alongside Nvidia's disclosure this week of a $21 billion stake in SpaceX itself.
Reporting based on coverage from Spaceflight Now, Space.com and UPI.