(NET) Falcon 9 B5 • SpaceMobile 11–13

(NET) Falcon 9 B5 • SpaceMobile 11–13

A SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket will launch three BlueBird Block 2 (BB2B) satellite for AST SpaceMobile. The satellites use AST & Science's patented technologies for connecting to cellphones in a space environment for their SpaceMobile constellation. B10XX.X is the Falcon 9 booster flying this mission. - The BlueBird Block 2 satellites are twice as large and have 10 times the capacity of the Block 1 sats and the BlueWalker 3 prototype. These satellites have an updated ControlSat bus, using carbon fiber instead of aluminium, allowing them to be stacked and reducing their mass. They weigh around 4.5 tonnes each and are equipped with two separate, independent electric Xe-thruster propulsion modules. At nearly 223m² a BB2B satellite features the largest commercial communications array in low Earth orbit. The company needs between 45 and 60 BlueBirds for continuous coverage in the United States, supporting text, voice and data services. Each satellite has a designed service life of 7 years.

📍 Space Launch Complex 40, Cape Canaveral, FL, Vereinigte Staaten

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