Space Launch Complex 40, Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
Orbit
Low Earth Orbit
A precise target is listed. It can still move before launch; check the operator before watching or travelling.
35th commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station operated by SpaceX. The flight will be conducted under the second Commercial Resupply Services contract with NASA.
Cargo Dragon 2 brings supplies and payloads, including critical materials to directly support science and research investigations that occur onboard the orbiting laboratory.
Source & record notes
Mission description, schedule, status and precision supplied by Launch Library 2. This page does not independently report the mission.
Provider record updated: 12/10/2026, 21:26:29 UTC.
A precise target is listed. It can still move before launch; check the operator before watching or travelling.
A classified mission for the United States Space Force. It is possibly a batch of classified LEO satellites based on SpaceX’s Starshield satellite bus, based on locations of ascent rocket stage drop zones being fits with previous SDA Transport Layer launches.
Source & record notes
Mission description, schedule, status and precision supplied by Launch Library 2. This page does not independently report the mission.
Provider record updated: 08/10/2026, 15:48:47 UTC.
The useful question is not just “When is the next rocket?” It is “How firm is this time, and what should I check before I watch?” Spaceflight Tracker brings the target date, its precision and the reported status together so you can make that distinction.
Start with the mission name and the launch site. A rocket family can fly several missions close together, and a broadcast with the right vehicle name can still be for the wrong flight. The operator is the organization providing the launch; it is not necessarily the organization that owns the satellite. The mission brief identifies the payload when the source provides it.
Read the status separately from the time. A precise timestamp can coexist with an unconfirmed schedule. Equally, “Go” describes the provider’s readiness label; it is not a promise that weather, equipment and the launch range will all remain ready. The calendar sorts by target date so a nearby tentative mission is not silently moved behind a later confirmed one.
A practical reading order
Mission and site → date precision → status → operator’s latest announcement. If any of these disagree, resolve the disagreement before treating the time as an appointment.
02 / Read the clock carefully
The difference between a target and a window
“No earlier than,” often shortened to NET, is the currently listed earliest target. A launch window is the interval in which the flight can depart and still meet its mission constraints. The geometry of the destination and Earth’s rotation help determine that opportunity. Some flights have a window spanning a period of time; others have an instantaneous opportunity. Missing that opportunity can mean waiting for a later attempt. NASA explains the orbital geometry behind launch windows.
The provider also supplies a precision field. A month-level estimate should be read as a planning horizon, even if the underlying database stores a full date and time. This site suppresses the clock for estimates that are not precise to the minute or second. When precision is missing, it labels that uncertainty instead of assuming the stored timestamp is exact.
Worked example · illustrative, not a live mission
Suppose a target is 00:30 UTC on 18 September. For a viewer at UTC−3, that is 21:30 on 17 September: subtracting three hours changes the calendar day. A reminder for the evening of the 18th would be a day late. Use the local-time switch on the schedule and check both the date and the zone.
A clock passing the target only means the listed time has passed. It cannot tell you whether engines ignited, the count held, or the flight was postponed. The status must come from a later report. This is why an elapsed target is labelled as awaiting confirmation rather than automatically becoming a successful launch.
03 / Turn the listing into a viewing plan
Three checks before you settle in
While choosing a mission: use the target date to find a candidate, then inspect precision. A month or quarter is useful for following a campaign, but too broad for a viewing appointment.
On the day: check the operator’s mission announcement against the listing. Confirm the mission name, launch site, time zone and broadcast start. Coverage can begin before the target, and a video can remain online as a replay after the flight.
When the countdown pauses: listen for whether the team is holding within the current attempt or has scrubbed it. A hold does not always mean cancellation; a scrub ends that attempt. Do not assume tomorrow’s opportunity has the same time.
NASA’s countdown rehearsal description explains that holds can be built into a timeline to allow checks and align the count with the launch window. An unplanned pause can look similar to a viewer, so the broadcast commentary matters more than a timer running on a separate website. See NASA’s explanation of countdown holds.
For an in-person visit, make a separate plan for the viewing location. A launch site on a mission record is not a public access point. Confirm opening hours, ticket conditions, closures and permitted viewing areas with the venue. Keep transport and accommodation plans flexible; this schedule is not a travel guarantee.
04 / Know what you are watching
Liftoff is the beginning of the result.
A broadcast can show a spectacular departure without yet establishing whether the payload reached its intended orbit. Keep the launch vehicle’s progress, any booster recovery and the payload’s deployment separate in your notes. They answer different questions about the flight.
How to read common broadcast milestones
Milestone
What to check next
Liftoff
The flight has started. Wait for ascent and spacecraft updates before describing the mission as complete.
Stage separation
Follow the upper stage carrying the payload. A returning booster may appear in a separate camera view.
Engine cutoff / coast
Look for the planned flight sequence. A coast may precede another burn; silence is not itself evidence of a problem.
Payload deployment
Check what the operator confirms about separation and the achieved orbit. A spacecraft can still have commissioning tasks ahead.
There is no universal minute-by-minute sequence for all vehicles. For example, NASA’s published Cygnus CRS-5 timeline distinguished first-stage cutoff, separation, second-stage ignition, orbit insertion and payload separation. Use the actual mission timeline to interpret an individual flight.
Sources, limits & corrections
Launch dates, mission descriptions, status labels and available video links come from The Space Devs’ Launch Library 2. They are cached for 30 minutes, so operator announcements may be newer. A missing feed is shown as unavailable; it is never replaced with demonstration missions. API documentation describes the underlying records.
This guide provides original explanations and an illustrative time conversion alongside attributed provider data. It was revised with AI assistance on . It does not claim independent flight reporting or a manual check of every live record. The linked NASA examples explain launch concepts, not the status of today’s flights.
