Complete List Of Cape Canaveral Rocket Launches In 2026 — Early Starlink Flights Keep Florida’s Space Coast Busy

Florida's Space Coast — home to NASA's Kennedy Space Center and the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station — continues to be the world's busiest launch region. After an unprecedented 109 orbital launches last year, commercial and government operators have already picked up the pace for 2026.

Early 2026 highlights: On Jan. 4 a SpaceX Falcon 9 lifted off from Launch Complex 40 (LC‑40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station carrying the first Starlink mission of the year. Days later, on Jan. 9, SpaceX launched another Falcon 9 Starlink mission from the Cape while a large column of smoke from a 1,400‑acre prescribed burn at the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge rose nearby — a striking reminder of how launch operations interact with the region's natural landscape.

What This List Covers

This page tracks all launches from Cape Canaveral and will be updated as new mission dates are announced and flights occur. Last year set a new benchmark with 109 orbital launches, 101 of which were flown by SpaceX's Falcon 9 vehicles — underscoring the growing dominance of reusable rockets in high‑cadence launch operations.

Why It Matters

High launch cadence from Florida supports satellite constellations, scientific missions and government payloads while sustaining a broad aerospace workforce and supply chain across the region. Expect the list to expand through 2026 as commercial providers and national space agencies publish more mission schedules.

For ongoing mission coverage and the latest schedule updates from FLORIDA TODAY's Space Team, visit floridatoday.com/space. To receive weekly highlights and launch reminders, consider signing up for the Space newsletter on their site.

Reporter: Rick Neale, Space Reporter, FLORIDA TODAY — Rneale@floridatoday.com • Twitter/X: @RickNeale1

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