When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission.
SpaceX launched the first mission of 2026 tonight (Jan. 2).
A Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California tonight at 9:09 p.m. EST (6:09 p.m. local California time; 0209 GMT on Jan. 3), carrying an Italian Earth-observing satellite to orbit.
The rocket's first stage landed back at Vandenberg as planned about 8.5 minutes after liftoff. It was the 21st flight for this particular booster, according to SpaceX.
About 4.5 minutes later, the Falcon 9's second stage deployed the payload — a COSMO-SkyMed Second Generation satellite — into low Earth orbit for the Italian Space Agency and the Italian Ministry of Defence.
The spacecraft will study Earth using synthetic aperture radar, gathering data at all times of day and in all weather conditions from an altitude of 385 miles (620 kilometers).
COSMO-SkyMed Second Generation is a small network designed to "monitor the Earth for the sake of emergency prevention, strategy, scientific and commercial purposes, providing data on a global scale to support a variety of applications," according to a European Space Agency explainer.
Among those applications are "risk management, cartography, forest & environment protection, natural resources exploration, land management, defense and security, maritime surveillance, food & agriculture management," the explainer adds.
Three COSMO-SkyMed Second Generation satellites have now launched to date. The first one flew in December 2019 atop a Soyuz rocket, and the second lifted off in January 2022 on a Falcon 9.
Tonight's liftoff was the first of 2026 not just for SpaceX but for the global launch community.
It's no surprise that SpaceX is breaking in the year. Elon Musk's company launched a whopping 165 orbital missions in 2025 — far more than any other entity, either commercial or governmental. That was also a record for SpaceX, which the company may aim to break again this year.
Editor's note: This story was updated at 9:25 p.m. ET on Jan. 2 with news of successful launch, rocket landing and satellite deployment.
LATEST POSTS
- 1
Yoshi mania, Happy Meals and not-so-great reviews: A small talk guide to 'The Super Mario Galaxy Movie' - 2Astronomers detect rare 'free floating' exoplanet 10,000 light-years from Earth
- 3Colorado residents face earliest water restrictions ever — a harbinger of worse to come
- 4Coalition led by Iraqi PM al-Sudani wins parliamentary elections
- 5Hundreds of kilos of protected plant seized by Israel Nature and Parks Authority in Golan
- The most effective method to Stay away from Normal Traps While Recruiting a Material Organization
- Swap The Amalfi Coast For This Low-Cost Ligurian Seaside Town
- Vote in favor of your #1 Sort of Convenience for a Family
- Rocket shines under the northern lights | Space photo of the day for March 25, 2026
- 7 Countries Where Newcomers Feel Most Welcome, and 3 Where They Often Don’t
- Releasing Learning Experiences: A Survey of the \Learning Made Fun\ Instructive Application
- Israel says Iran's military industry will be destroyed 'within days'
- Cells have more mini ‘organs’ than researchers thought − unbound by membranes, these rogue organelles challenge biology’s fundamentals
- Investigating Design and Individual Style: Track down Your Remarkable Look
