SpaceX Launches Final Communication Satellites for SES Commercial Services

SpaceX launched this Sunday, November 12, the final pair of satellites for the telecommunication company SES to start its service operations phase.

The aeronautics company deployed the Falcon 9 rocket to deliver the third O3b mPower satellites into the medium Earth orbit.

The liftoff was initiated from Falcon 9's launchpad in Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 4:08 p.m. EST. The flight was the second Falcon 9 mission of the weekend.

Each spacecraft was designed to fix the electrical issues in the first four modules in the orbit. The Luxembourg-based company expects the launches to resolve shorter operational life and low broadband capacity brought by the sporadic glitches.

SES Broadband Communication Issues and Glitches

The launch of the O3b mPOWER satellites was a mitigation amidst the ongoing Boeing and SES investigation into the root cause of the power interruptions.

With each satellite capable of scaling up 10 times more gigabits than the first 20 03b satellites, SES intends for the customers to once again "depend on us to deliver the reliable and secure connectivity required to run their operations."

In this year alone, SES has developed and tested more than 160 03b mPower terminals over the previous satellite constellations to improve its services.

The company provides connectivity services to various telecom and mobile network operators, government agencies, energy, and cruise industries around the world.

SES has commissioned Boeing to build a total of 13 satellites, all of which are to be launched by SpaceX.

Falcon 9 Rocket Mission and Purpose

The Falcon 9 rocket has recently increased its "rideshare" operations as the reusable, two-stage rocket design is used more on telecommunication-related services.

Of the Falcon 9's previous flights, five were dedicated to building out SpaceX's ambitious internet satellite constellation project, Starlink. Started in 2019, Starlink currently has over 5,000 operational broadband satellites.

Including the third SES satellite launch, SpaceX has initiated more than 80 missions for this year alone.