SpaceX to launch SiriusXM communications satellite from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
Look for SpaceX to launch another SiriusXM geostationary communications satellite into orbit the night of Friday, June 6, from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
SiriusXM reported about 33 million subscribers and $1.6 billion in total revenue during the first quarter of the year, per an earnings release. The satellite radio company's podcast business continued to grow, racking up nearly 1 billion downloads and 70 million monthly podcast listeners.
The SXM-10 satellite will lift off atop a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 40 during a window that opens at 11:19 p.m. June 6 and extends overnight until 3:48 a.m. June 7, a Federal Aviation Administration operations plan advisory shows.
Cape Canaveral: Is there a launch today? Upcoming SpaceX, Axiom, ULA rocket launch schedule at Cape Canaveral
"This latest satellite marks another milestone in our over two-decade partnership with SiriusXM, supporting the continued evolution of their satellite radio network," Maxar Space Systems officials said in a May 15 tweet, which noted the satellite had arrived at KSC via truck ahead of launch.
Maxar has built SiriusXM's satellite network, dating to the first-generation versions launched in 2000. The SXM-10 satellite and its two future companions, SXM-11 and SXM-12, represent third-generation spacecraft.
During the upcoming launch window, scattered showers and thunderstorms should emerge between 8 p.m. and 2 a.m. at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, the National Weather Service reported. Overall chance of precipitation: 60%.
Partly cloudy skies should otherwise prevail, with a low around 73 and south-southeast wind around 5 mph turning southwest after midnight.
On Dec. 5, a Falcon 9 launched the SiriusXM SXM-9 satellite into transfer orbit from NASA's Kennedy Space Center. That milestone mission marked the 100th time a Falcon first-stage booster landed atop the SpaceX drone ship Just Read the Instructions in the Atlantic Ocean.
Looking ahead to next week, another Falcon 9 will launch Axiom Space's quartet of commercial astronauts to the International Space Station on a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft. Liftoff is scheduled for 8:22 a.m. Tuesday, June 10, from pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center.
The Ax-4 mission commander is former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson. She is joined by astronauts from India, Poland and Hungary.
For the latest news from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and NASA's Kennedy Space Center, visit floridatoday.com/space. Another easy way: Click here to sign up for our weekly Space newsletter.
Rick Neale is a Space Reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Neale at Rneale@floridatoday.com. Twitter/X: @RickNeale1
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This article originally appeared on Florida Today: SpaceX to launch SiriusXM communications satellite from Cape Canaveral
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