by Jeff Cunningham

So far, 2017 has been a busy and successful year for SpaceX, and Elon Musk and company look to continue that run of good luck with the launch of another Falcon 9 rocket on Monday evening, May 15.  This mission will deliver Inmarsat-5 F4, a commercial communications satellite, to a Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO).

The launch will take place at historic Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, with a 49-minute launch window opening at 7:21pm EDT.  (A backup launch window opens at 7:21pm EDT on Tuesday, May 16 if necessary.)  Due to the specific requirements of this mission, there will be no attempt to land the first stage of the Falcon 9 following this launch.

For those not lucky enough to be able to watch the launch in person, SpaceX’s webcast of the launch will go live approximately 15 minutes before liftoff.