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Rocket launched from Central Coast boosts 50 small satellites into orbit from Friday

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying 50 small satellites liefts off from Vandenberg Air Force Base Friday morning
SpaceX
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying 50 small satellites lifts off from Vandenberg Air Force Base Friday morning

Liftoff visible from much of Central and South Coasts

It was a picture perfect rocket launch from Santa Barbara County, visible throughout much of the Central and South Coasts.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying 50 small Starlink satellites lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base Friday morning. With clear skies in much of the region, the rocket was visible as far away as Westlake Village.

The reusable booster safely landed on a barge in the Pacific Ocean. About an hour after the launch, SpaceX officials said the satellites were successfully put into orbit.

The 50 Starlink satellites are part of what's intended to be a network of more than 40,000 of the satellites providing internet service to underserved parts of the world.

Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral.