SpaceX Rocket Launches With Rival OneWeb Satellites On Board

OneWeb turned to SpaceX after Russia invaded Ukraine
OneWeb has more launches planned to achieve global coverage

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, with a payload of 40 satellites lifts off from pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center on Dec. 8.Photographer: John Raoux/AP Photos

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By Loren Grush

December 9, 2022 at 12:07 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

SpaceX successfully launched 40 satellites for competing communications company OneWeb on Thursday.

It’s the first of three planned missions the unlikely collaborators are set to perform over the coming months despite their separate efforts to build megaconstellations that will beam broadband Internet coverage to Earth.