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SpaceX has set another milestone in rocket reusability after a Falcon 9 first-stage booster completed its 32nd mission, touching down safely following the latest Starlink satellites deployment, reported Space.com. Booster 1067 lifted off on Monday, December 8, carrying an upper-stage booster and 29 Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit.
The rocket launched from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a day later than planned due to unsuitable weather.
Watch Falcon 9 launch 29 @Starlink satellites to orbit from Florida https://t.co/r67ia5hJWt
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) December 8, 2025
After powering the upper stage for roughly two and a half minutes, the booster separated and began its controlled descent. It successfully landed on the droneship ‘Just Read the Instructions’, positioned in the Atlantic Ocean.
SpaceX’s autonomous spaceport drone ship ‘Just Read the Instructions’ (Photo: Wikimedia Commons).
With its 32nd flight now complete, the booster moves SpaceX closer to its long-term target of up to 40 Falcon-9 first-stages.
Starlink satellites constellation update
Meanwhile, the upper stage continued its ascent. Following a coast phase and a second Merlin engine burn, it was scheduled to release the Group 6-92 batch of Starlink satellites about an hour after launch.
The Starlink constellation now consists of more than 9,100 active satellites, extending broadband coverage to regions lacking traditional internet infrastructure. The network also supports inflight WiFi on commercial aircraft and limited satellite-to-cell connectivity on certain mobile carriers.
Monday’s mission marked SpaceX’s 158th Falcon 9 launch of the year and the 510th reuse of a booster since the company began flying previously used first stages in 2017. It came just a day after SpaceX launched another group of 29 Starlink satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Sunday (December 7).
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