Falcon 9 launches Italian imaging satellite
Posted: Sat, Jan 3, 2026, 11:37 AM ET (1637 GMT)
SpaceX started the new year with the launch of an Italian imaging satellite Friday night. A Falcon 9 lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base at 9:09 pm EST (0209 GMT Saturday) and deployed the Cosmo-SkyMed Second Generation FM3 satellite into low Earth orbit about 13 minutes later. The spacecraft is the third in a series operated by the Italian defense ministry and the Italian space agency ASI to provide radar imagery for civilian and defense applications. The launch is the first of the year for SpaceX, which performed a company record of 165 Falcon 9 launches in 2025.
SpaceX started the new year with the launch of an Italian imaging satellite Friday night. A Falcon 9 lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base at 9:09 pm EST (0209 GMT Saturday) and deployed the Cosmo-SkyMed Second Generation FM3 satellite into low Earth orbit about 13 minutes later. The spacecraft is the third in a series operated by the Italian defense ministry and the Italian space agency ASI to provide radar imagery for civilian and defense applications. The launch is the first of the year for SpaceX, which performed a company record of 165 Falcon 9 launches in 2025.
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