SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 from Vandenberg Space Force Base on Jan. 2, 2026, completing the company's first California mission of the year. The two-stage, 230-foot rocket deployed the CSG-3 Earth-observation satellite for the Italian Space Agency into low-Earth orbit after two delays for additional ground-system checks. Liftoff occurred at 7:09 p.m. Mountain Time, and the mission underscores SpaceX's continuing role in routine access to space.
It’s Falcon 9: SpaceX Launches Its First Rocket Mission of 2026 From Vandenberg
Falcon 9 rocket launched from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County on a mission to deploy an Earth-observing satellite.
SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base on Friday, Jan. 2, marking the company’s first California mission of 2026.
The two-stage, 230-foot Falcon 9 carried the CSG-3 Earth-observation satellite for the Italian Space Agency into low-Earth orbit. The launch followed two schedule slips in late December and early January to complete additional ground-system checks; liftoff occurred at 7:09 p.m. Mountain Time (MT).
Mission Details
Payload: CSG-3 Earth-observation satellite for the Italian Space Agency (Agenzia Spaziale Italiana).
Vehicle: Two-stage Falcon 9, approximately 230 feet tall.
Launch Site: Vandenberg Space Force Base, California.
Why It Matters
The CSG-3 satellite will bolster Earth-observation capabilities for science and environmental monitoring. The successful deployment continues SpaceX’s frequent cadence of commercial and government missions, highlighting the company’s role in routine access to orbit.
SpaceX was founded in 2002 by Elon Musk and is headquartered at Starbase in South Texas near the U.S.-Mexico border. Starbase — where SpaceX carries out regular flight tests of its roughly 400-foot Starship megarocket — was recently approved by local residents to become its own municipality.
Watch the launch below. USA Today contributed to this report. This article originally appeared in the El Paso Times.
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