9 orbital launches are scheduled worldwide this week. Two Falcon 9s are anticipated to ship payloads from California, whereas a Vega C will launch Sentinel-3C & FLEX from French Guiana. 5 launches from China are additionally on the manifest, together with a Gravity 1 from Orienspace, and a Soyuz 2.1b will ship the Progress MS-35 cargo car to the Worldwide House Station (ISS).
Vega C | Sentinel-3C & FLEX
The primary launch of the week was on a Vega C, launched from the Ensemble de Lancement Vega (ELV) launch complicated on the Guiana House Centre in French Guiana on Tuesday, Sept. 15. The medium-lift car launched on a northerly trajectory at an instantaneous launch window at 01:21 UTC.
Vega C delivered two payloads developed by Thales Alenia House to a Solar-synchronous orbit (SSO). This consists of Sentinel-3C, a 1,143 kg Earth statement satellite tv for pc developed by the European House Company (ESA) below the Copernicus program. The second payload, FLEX, additionally developed by ESA, will collect details about the well being of the world’s vegetation.
The expendable car options 4 levels and may ship as much as 2,300 kg to SSO. The primary stage of the car is a stable rocket motor, P120C, fueled by Hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene (HTPB), ammonium perchlorate (AP), and aluminum powder (Al). The second and third levels, Zefiro 40 and Zefiro 9, are additionally stable rocket motors fueled by the identical propellants. The fourth stage, the Perspective & Vernier Higher Module (AVUM), makes use of Unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine (UDMH) and dinitrogen tetroxide (N2O4) to ship payloads to specific orbits.
ZhuQue-2E Block 2 | Unknown Payload
A ZhuQue-2E, developed by Landspace, launched from Website 96A on the Jiuquan Satellite tv for pc Launch Heart in China on Sept. 15. The medium-lift launch car flew on a southerly trajectory throughout a 22-minute launch window that started at 6:18 UTC, with liftoff at 06:26 UTC. The car launched to polar orbit to ship ten communications satellites for the SpaceSail Polar Group.
ZhuQue-2E is a two-stage launch car that produces a complete of three,312 kilonewtons (kN) of thrust at liftoff. The primary stage is powered by 4 TQ-12A gas-generator cycle engines fueled by methane (CH4) and liquid oxygen (LOX). The second stage makes use of a single TQ-15 engine, which can also be fueled by the identical propellants.
The launch was the third mission for a ZhuQue-2 in 2026 and ninth total.
Gravity 1 | Unknown Payload
Gravity 1, developed by Orienspace, is predicted to launch from the Haiyang offshore launch location on the Haiyang Oriental Spaceport in China on Sept. 15. The car is predicted to launch throughout a 21-minute launch window starting at 09:50 UTC, with a deliberate liftoff time of 09:55 UTC. Gravity 1 will launch on a southerly trajectory to ship an unknown payload to low-Earth orbit (LEO).
Gravity 1, a four-stage car, launches from a sea-launch platform within the Yellow Sea. The car makes use of seven solid-rocket boosters throughout ascent, with 4 igniting at liftoff, adopted by activation of a core booster as soon as the primary 4 detach. The higher levels additionally use stable rocket propellants, and the car has a complete thrust of 5,880 kN at liftoff.
The mission would be the second launch of 2026 for Gravity 1 and the fourth total for the car.
Falcon 9 | USSF-259
The primary SpaceX mission of the week is predicted from House Launch Complicated 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg House Pressure Base in California on Tuesday, Sept. 15. The four-hour launch window opens at 6:00 PM PDT, with Falcon 9 launching on a southerly trajectory to ship the categorized USSF-25 payload to an unknown orbit for the U.S. House Pressure.
Falcon 9’s first stage, B1097, shall be on its thirteenth flight and shall be recovered by SpaceX’s autonomous droneship Of Course I Nonetheless Love You within the Pacific Ocean. The mission would be the 720th total launch for SpaceX, and the 106th Falcon 9 mission of the 12 months.
Falcon 9 is vertical at pad 4E in California forward of tonight’s launch of the U.S.-259 mission → pic.twitter.com/JwV3pf2D2m
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 15, 2026
Soyuz 2.1b | Progress MS-35
A Russian Soyuz 2.1b is scheduled to launch the Progress MS-35 mission from Website 31/6 on the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan throughout an instantaneous launch window at 13:33:53 UTC on Sept. 16. The Soyuz car will launch on a northeasterly trajectory to ship the Progress MS-35 cargo car to the Worldwide House Station (ISS). Progress MS-35 will finally dock to the Poisk module on the Station’s Russian section.
Soyuz 2.1b is a three-stage medium-lift launch car that makes use of 4 strap-on RD-107A engines that wrap across the second ‘core stage’ powered by a single RD-108A engine fueled by kerosene (RP-1) and LOX. The third stage is powered by a single engine RD-0124 utilizing the identical propellants.
The mission would be the sixth Soyuz 2.1b mission of 2026 and the a hundred and fifth mission total.
Progress MS-35 throughout processing forward of launch. (Credit score: Roscosmos)
Chang Zheng 12 | Unknown Payload
A Chang Zheng 12 (CZ-12) will launch from Industrial Launch Complicated 2 (LC-2) on the Wenchang House Launch Website in China on Thursday, Sept. 17. The car will launch throughout a 29-minute launch window starting at 12:25 UTC, with a deliberate liftoff time of 12:30 UTC. Chang Zheng 12 will launch on a southeasterly trajectory to ship an unknown payload to an undisclosed orbit.
The 2-stage medium-lift car includes a first stage powered by 4 YF-100K engines, fueled by RP-1 and LOX. The second stage makes use of two YF-115 engines additionally fueled by the identical propellants. The 62-m car can ship as much as 12,000 kg to LEO and has a complete liftoff thrust of 5,000 kN.
Kuaizhou 11 | Unknown Payload
A Kuaizhou 11 is predicted to launch from Website 95A on the Jiuquan Satellite tv for pc Launch Heart in China on Sept. 17. The car will launch on a southeasterly trajectory to an undisclosed orbit to ship an unspecified payload throughout a 41-minute launch window starting at 02:31 UTC, with a deliberate liftoff time of 02:35 UTC.
The four-stage Kuaizhou 11 is a 25.3-m tall car able to delivering as much as 1,500 kg to LEO. The mission would be the third mission of 2026 and the seventh mission total for Kuaizhou 11.
Kuaizhou 11 lifts off from Jiuquan. (Credit score: CASIC)
Chang Zheng 2D | Unknown Payload
The ultimate worldwide launch of the week is a Chang Zheng 2D (CZ-2D), anticipated to liftoff from Launch Complicated 9 (LC-9) on the Taiyuan Satellite tv for pc Launch Heart in China on Saturday, Sept. 19. The launch has a deliberate liftoff time of 10:50 UTC throughout a 23-minute launch window that begins at 10:43 UTC. The car will launch on a southerly trajectory to ship an unspecified payload to an unknown orbit.
The CZ-2D, developed by the China Aerospace Science and Know-how Company (CASC), is a two-stage medium-lift launch car able to delivering 3,500 kg to LEO. The primary stage is powered by 4 YF-21C gas-generator-cycle engines fueled by UDMH and N2O4, whereas the second stage makes use of a single YF-24C engine fueled by the identical propellants.
Falcon 9 | Starlink Group 15-27
The ultimate launch of the week is a Falcon 9 anticipated to liftoff from SLC-4E at Vandenberg on Saturday, Sept. 19. The four-hour window begins at 6:47 PM PDT, with the car launching on a southeasterly trajectory right into a LEO inclined at 70 levels. Falcon 9 will ship 27 Starlink v2 Mini satellites as a part of the corporate’s web mega-constellation.
Falcon booster B1093, flying on its seventeenth mission, will assist the mission, finally touchdown atop Of Course I Nonetheless Love You downrange within the Pacific Ocean after launch. The mission shall be Falcon 9’s 690th launch and the 107th of the 12 months. Moreover, this mission will function the 225th orbital launch try worldwide in 2026.
(Lead Picture: Falcon 9 launch streak. Credit score: Julia Bergeron for NSF)
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