Is there a rocket launch today? Watch SpaceX launch Starlink mission from California

And like all but one of the commercial spaceflight company's missions this month from the state, the rocket will once again be carrying a batch of Starlink satellites for deployment into low-Earth orbit.

The impending rocket launch, which could take place on a weekend morning, comes days after SpaceX's rideshare known as Transporter 14 also got off the ground from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County. For that mission, a Falcon 9 rocket delivered 70 payloads to orbit for paying customers, including 166 capsules containing human remains bound for a cosmic memorial service.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch of the NROL-186 mission can be seen from Phoenix after taking off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on June 28, 2024.

People in California have plenty of places to catch a glimpse of the rocket soaring up to the sky.

But it's important to keep in mind that rocket launches can be – and often are – scrubbed or delayed due to any number of factors, including poor weather conditions or unexpected issues with spacecraft. Check back with the VC Star for any updates on the impending rocket launch.

Here's what to know about the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base, as well as when and where to watch it:

What time is the SpaceX rocket launch from California?

The launch is being targeted for Saturday, June 28, with backup opportunities available Sunday, June 29, according to a Federal Aviation Administration operations plan advisory.

Multiple sites dedicated to tracking spaceflights suggest the three-hour launch window opens at 9:43 a.m. PT. Neither SpaceX nor the Vandenberg Space Force Base have yet publicly confirmed the launch.

Where is the next launch from California?

The launch will take place from Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, California. Most launches from Vandenberg fly at a south or southeast trajectory.

What is the next mission launching from Vandenberg?

The spaceflight will make use of the company's famous two-stage 230-foot Falcon 9 rocket, one of the world's most active, to deliver Starlink satellites into low-Earth orbit.

The altitude is low enough to allows for things like satellites to circle Earth fairly quickly.

How to watch SpaceX Starlink launch livestream

SpaceX will provide livestream of the launch on its website beginning about five minutes before liftoff, along with updates on social media site X.

Where to watch the Starlink launch in California

Because Vandenberg is an active military base, the launch complex does not host public viewings of launches.

But if conditions are clear, rocket launches from the Vandenberg Space Force Base can be viewed from several locations as far as Santa Barbara and Los Angeles.

Space Launch Schedule, a website dedicated to tracking upcoming rocket launches, provided a list of places in California to catch the launch in person:

• 13th Street and Arguello Boulevard, the public site with the closest views of SpaceX launches
• Floradale Avenue and West Ocean Avenue, officially designated as the “viewing site for SLC-6” (space launch complex-6)
• Renwick Avenue and West Ocean Avenue, another intersection close to the base where spectators can park
• Santa Lucia Canyon Road and Victory Road, provides a partial view of Complex 4
• Surf Beach on Ocean Avenue, the only location where the public can view the ignition and liftoff of rockets from Complex 4.  Public access is at the Amtrak Surf Station parking area, but the area is closed in the case of back-to-back launches.

The city of Lompoc in Santa Barbara County is filled with places to catch a rocket launch. The city's tourism bureau, Explore Lompoc, even maintains this list with additional viewing locations:

• Ocean Park, 6851 Ocean Park Road, which, while it doesn't have a view of the launch pad itself, is located only four miles from the launch site and provides a good vantage to see rockets get off the ground. Parking is limited, and law enforcement will close the road to the beach once parking is full.
• Allan Hancock College, 1 Hancock Drive, a community college located nine miles from the launch site where both the launch pad and rocket's tip can be seen before liftoff.
• Riverbend Park, N A Street and McLaughlin Road, located within 10 miles of the launch site, is filled with large fields for activities or for spectators to set up chairs.

Will there be sonic booms?

Residents of Santa Barbara County, San Luis Obispo County and Ventura County, California, could hear sonic booms, according to Vandenberg Space Force Base.

Sonic booms are brief, thunder-like noises that are often heard from the ground when a spacecraft or aircraft travels faster than the speed of sound.

What to know about reentry

Following the launch, the Falcon 9 rocket's booster will aim to land on a SpaceX drone ship, nicknamed "Of Course I Still Love You," in the Pacific Ocean. This allows for SpaceX personnel to recover the booster so it can be reused in future spaceflights.

What is SpaceX?

The commercial spaceflight company is headquartered at Starbase in South Texas near the U.S.-Mexico border. The site, which is where SpaceX has been conducting routine flight tests of its 400-foot megarocket known as Starship, was recently voted by residents to become its own city.

SpaceX conducts many of its own rocket launches, most using the Falcon 9 rocket, from both California and Florida. That includes a regular cadence of deliveries of Starlink internet satellites into orbit, and occasional privately-funded commercial crewed missions on the Dragon.

The most recent of SpaceX's private human spaceflights, a mission known as Fram2, took place in April. SpaceX was also famously involved in funding and operating the headline-grabbing Polaris Dawn crewed commercial mission in September 2024.

SpaceX additionally benefits from billions of dollars in contracts from NASA and the Department of Defense by providing launch services for classified satellites and other payloads.

What is Starlink?

Owned by SpaceX founder Elon Musk, Starlink is a constellation of more than 7,000 satellites that provide internet service to customers around the world. SpaceX has spent more than six years delivering the satellites to orbit with a regular cadence of rocket launches from both Florida and California.

While most satellite internet services operate from single geostationary satellites orbiting Earth at about 22,236 miles, Starlink is a constellation of thousands of satellites that operate from a low-Earth orbit, about 341 miles up. That allows Starlink's satellites to have lower latency and data time between user and the satellite, improving performance of things like streaming, online gaming and video calls.

What is the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California?

Established in 1941, the site was previously known as the Vandenberg Air Force Base. Though it's a military base, the site also hosts both civil and commercial space launches for entities like NASA and SpaceX.

Space Launch Delta 30, a unit of Space Force, is responsible for managing the launch operations at Vandenberg, as well as the missile tests that take place at the base.

Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at [email protected]

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Is there a rocket launch today? Watch SpaceX launch Starlink mission from California