A SpaceX rocket is set to launch Thursday morning and carry a weather satellite into low-Earth orbit.
The Falcon 9 rocket launch is scheduled to launch in a 10-minute window that opens at 7:25 a.m. SpaceX said people in Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Ventura counties might hear one or more sonic booms during the landing of the rocket's first stage booster back at Vandenberg Space Force Base.
More SpaceX launch stories:
The mission for the United States Space Force is an effort to improve space-based environmental monitoring with use of the Weather System Follow-on–Microwave (WSF-M) satellite. The satellite can capture real-time data on sea ice, surface winds, tropical cyclone intensity, snow depth, soil moisture and more.
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Launches just after sunset and before sunrise usually provide the best views as the rocket reflects the sun's rays with a dark sky in the background. Sunrise is at 6:27 a.m. Thursday.
A backup launch window opens Friday morning.
