SpaceX launches 23 Starlink satellites; fourth liftoff in week

Aug. 2 (UPI) -- SpaceX launched 23 Starlink satellites into orbit early Friday morning from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at 1 a.m., EDT, with the first stage returning to Earth to stick its Atlantic Ocean landing on the drone ship A Shortfall of Gravitas.

SpaceX moved back the launch for nearly an hour into the launch window, which opened at 12:19 a.m.

The company did not explain the delay. Factors that could have played a factor in the delay include weather and the position of the drone ship.

Friday's launch was the 12th for the booster using the mission, which included nine previous Starlink launches.

It was SpaceX's fourth launch in less than a week as the space company sought to get back on its game after a Falcon 9 rocket failure July 11.

Space X was forced to ground missions for two weeks as the company and the Federal Aviation Administration investigated the incident.

The second-stage booster of the Falcon 9 rocket used in that flight failed to complete its second burn leaving the 20 satellites in lower orbit than desired, leaving them to re-enter the Earth's atmosphere and die.