A late afternoon or early evening rocket launch may be planned – and depending on weather and visibility, it could light up the skies over the Treasure Coast.
SpaceX is expected to send another batch of Starlink satellites into space via a Falcon 9 rocket for its next mission near Cape Canaveral on Thursday, October 17.
Below are suggestions on where to watch the rocket launch from this area, real-time weather radar to check for rainy conditions, and other things you need to know. If there are any changes to the launch schedule, this story will be updated.
For questions or comments, please email FLORIDA TODAY Space Reporter Rick Neale at rneale@floridatoday.com. For more space news from the USA TODAY Network, visit floridatoday.com/space.
Can you see a rocket launch from the Kennedy Space Center or Cape Canaveral near Sebastian, Vero Beach or Stuart, Florida?
Weather permitting and depending on cloud cover, rocket launches – especially nighttime launches – from the neighboring Space Coast may be visible in the Treasure Coast area, especially from Sebastian Inlet, Vero Beach or other parts of Indian River County.
Is there a rocket launch from Florida? The next one is Thursday, October 17: SpaceX Starlink 8-19
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Mission: SpaceX is targeting a 4½-hour window on Thursday, October 17, to launch a payload of Starlink broadband satellites into low Earth orbit, navigation alerts indicate.
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Start window: 3:55pm to 8:25pm EDT Thursday, October 17
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Location: Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
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Procedure: Northeast
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Live coverage begins 90 minutes before launch at floridatoday.com/space: You can watch live rocket launch coverage from USA TODAY Network’s Space Team, which includes FLORIDA TODAY space reporters Rick Neale and Brooke Edwards and visual journalists Craig Bailey, Malcolm Denemark and Tim Shortt. Our Space Team will provide timely updates in a mobile-friendly live blog, complete with a countdown clock, at floridatoday.com/space, starting 90 minutes before launch. You can download the free FLORIDA TODAY app, available in the App Store or Google Play, or type floridatoday.com/space into your browser.
Where to see a Florida rocket launch in Indian River County: What does the Treasure Coast rocket launch display look like?
The best views to see a rocket launch from neighboring Brevard County, also called the Space Coast, are along the beach here. Visibility in Indian River County, St. Lucie County and Martin County, part of the Treasure Coast, will depend on weather conditions, and people should take care not to block traffic or passage on bridges and to avoid staying on beaches stick to the rules. Look due north. Here are some recommended places, from closest to Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and Kennedy Space Center to farthest:
• You can see the rocket launch almost anywhere in Brevard. That includes Melbourne beachthat borders Indian River County, or from Grant-Valkaria along the Indian River Lagoon.
• Sebastian Inlet Park9700 S. State Road A1A, Melbourne Beach (entrance fees apply)
• Wabasso beach park1808 Wabasso Beach Road, Wabasso
• Ambersands beach park12566 N. SR A1A, Vero Beach (free parking)
• South Beach Park1700 Ocean Drive, Vero Beach (free parking)
• Merrill Barber Bridge in Vero Beach
• Alma Lee Loy Bridge in Vero Beach
• Fort Pierce Inlet905 Shorewinds Drive
• Blind Creek Beach North and South, South Ocean Drive or SR A1A on Hutchinson Island in Fort Pierce
• Blue Heron Beach2101 Blue Heron Boulevard, Fort Pierce
• Frederick Douglass Memorial Park3600 S. Ocean Drive, Fort Pierce
• Dollman Park on the beach9200 South Ocean Drive, Jensen Beach
• Herman’s Bay Beach7880 South Ocean Drive, Jensen Beach
• John Brooks Park on the beach3300 S Ocean Drive, Fort Pierce
• Middle Cove beach4600 South Ocean Drive, Fort Pierce
• Normandy beach in Jensen Beach
• Pepper Park on the beach3302 N. SR A1A, Fort Pierce,
• Walton Rocks Beachwith a dog park, 6700 South Ocean Drive, Jensen Beach
• Waveland Beach10350 S. Ocean Drive, Jensen Beach
• Refuge house and beach301 SE MacArthur Blvd., Stuart
• National highway A1A causeway in Stuart
Rocket launch photos from Vero Beach, Florida
Rocket launch photo from Stuart, Florida
Rocket launch photos from Jensen Beach, Florida
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This article originally appeared in Treasure Coast Newspapers: SpaceX launch Thursday: Best places to see from Fort Pierce, Jensen Beach
