19th SpaceX Launch Sends to Orbit Largest Number of Payloads Ever from U.S. Soil

Affectionately called SmallSat Express, the mission marked the moment when the largest number of payloads were sent to space in one fell swoop from U.S. soil: 64 satellites belong to 34 commercial and government organizations from 17 countries.

The rocket which carried the precious cargo to orbit has been specially dedicated to carrying small satellites. The first stage booster is the same used in the Bangabandhu Satellite-1 mission in May and the Merah Putih mission in August.

This third successful launch and landing of the booster marks another record, as no other company in the history of the world has achieved something remotely similar.

After takeoff, a series of six deployments meant to place the cargo in their assigned orbit followed and lasted for a total of six hours.

Following stage separation, the first stage booster landed safely on one of SpaceX's sea-faring pads, the Just Read the Instructions drone-ship in the Pacific Ocean.

And last, but not least, the Monday launch marked the 19th such operation this year, an unprecedented achievement by a single company. That means SpaceX has beaten last year’s record and is one inch closer to meeting the 22 launches goal.

With so little time left of the year, it’s unlikely however the company will manage to do so.

In about a decade or so, the Falcon family of rockets has become the most successful reusable booster in history. Because rockets can be reused, SpaceX launches are cheaper and have boosted interest in space-based systems by a great factor.

The company also manages a rather quick turnaround time, meaning each of the boosters recovered can be quickly used to launch once again.