If you’re looking for a fun way to close out your weekend, consider catching a rocket launch from Southern California.
The latest SpaceX mission to propel a group of Starlink satellites into low-Earth orbit is due to get off the ground Sunday, Sept. 28, from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County.
The good news? The commercial spaceflight company’s Falcon 9 rocket is easily seen across a wide section of California. The bad news? This time around, an afternoon launch window may be convenient for families with kids, but daylight could interfere with spectators’ views the farther they are from Vandenberg.
One more thing to keep in mind: Postponements due to weather or issues with rockets are common with spaceflight, so plan accordingly. Check back with the VC Star for any updates on the impending launch.
In the meantime, here’s everything to know about the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base, as well as when and where to watch it.
When is the next rocket launch from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California?
SpaceX is working toward a Sunday, Sept. 28, launch of its Falcon 9 rocket from the Vandenberg Space Force Base. The four-hour launch window opens at 4:32 p.m. PT, according to a launch alert from Vandenberg.
A Federal Aviation Administration operations plan advisory suggests a backup opportunity is available the next day if the launch were to be postponed.
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? SpaceX to deploy Starlink satellites
SpaceX will launch its famous two-stage 230-foot Falcon 9 rocket, one of the world’s most active, to deliver 28 Starlink satellites into low-Earth orbit.
The altitude is low enough to allow for things like satellites to circle Earth fairly quickly.
How to watch SpaceX Starlink launch livestream
As with most SpaceX missions, the launch will be available to stream on the company’s website and its new X TV mobile app, beginning about five minutes before liftoff. SpaceX may also provide updates on social media site X.
Where to watch rocket launches in Santa Barbara County, 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 Santa Barbara County in California to catch the launch in person:
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:
Where to watch launches from Vandenberg in Ventura County, California
Visit Ventura, the tourism bureau in Ventura County, provided a list to the USA TODAY Network of suggested locations to see a rocket launch from the county:
Where to watch California rocket launches in San Luis Obispo County
SLO CAL, a countywide destination marketing and management organization, maintains a list of its recommended best locations to watch a rocket launch in San Luis Obispo County to the north of the launch site:
Other cities in California where rockets may be visible
Other cities in California where you might glimpse the Falcon 9 rocket soaring overhead – particularly after sunset and before sunrise – as it climbs into the sky on a southern trajectory include:
Will there be sonic booms?
Residents of Santa Barbara County, San Luis Obispo County and Ventura County could hear sonic booms, according to SpaceX.
“Areas local to Vandenberg Space Force Base will hear the initial low rumble of take-off,” according to Vandenberg.
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 re-entry
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?
Billionaire Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, founded SpaceX in 2002.
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 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 Musk, Starlink is a constellation of nearly 8,000 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.
Residential plans for Starlink services start at $80 per month.
What is the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California?
The Vandenberg Space Force Base is a rocket launch site in Santa Barbara County in Southern 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.
Contributing: Jennifer Sangalang, USA TODAY Network; Paris Barraza, Palm Springs Desert Sun
Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at elagatta@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: When is the next rocket launch? Where to see SpaceX liftoff in California
Reporting by Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY NETWORK / Ventura County Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
