Falcon 9 Block 5 | Pandora / Twilight rideshare mission

Launch information

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Mission description

The Pandora small satellite was selected in 2021 as an inaugural mission in NASA’s Astrophysics Pioneers Program. It includes a 0.45-meter telescope that will improve our understanding of exoplanet atmospheres by disentangling exoplanet signals from their host stars, as well as studying host star variability with long-duration observations of 20 unique planets through visible-light photometry and near-infrared spectroscopy. Also launching on this launch are ride-share payloads under the "Falcon 9 Twilight mission", including satellites from Spire Global and Kepler Communications.

Launch status

Launch status information for space mission ‘Falcon 9 Block 5 | Pandora / Twilight rideshare mission’.

Launch image Falcon 9 Block 5 | Pandora / Twilight rideshare mission

TBD

Status: To Be Determined

Class: normal

Launch T0: Jan. 5, 2026, midnight

Timezone: America/Los_Angeles

Launch authority

Details about the the rocket, its target orbit and the launch pad location.

Mission

Pandora / Twilight rideshare mission (SSO)

Launcher

SpaceX

Rocket

Falcon 9

Location

Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

Pad

Space Launch Complex 4E

Type

Astrophysics

Orbit

Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO)

Satellites on-board

Tracking of on-board satellites will be available after the rocket launch date (Jan. 5, 2026).

Launch statistics

Launch statistics will be available after the rocket launch date (Jan. 5, 2026).

Latest news about the launch

No news available for this launch yet. Check back soon, we post updates daily.


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