At 7:30 a.m. Beijing time on July 9th, SpaceX used a Falcon 9 rocket to launch Turkey's communication satellite Türksat 6A.

This is Turkey's first fully independent and self-developed communication satellite, regarded as a "symbol of Turkey's independence".

Turkey has thus become the 11th country capable of manufacturing its own communication satellites.

The Türksat 6A satellite weighs approximately 4.25 tons, equipped with 20 Ku-band transponders, a total power of 7.5 kW, and a design life of 15 years.

It is equipped with a pair of solar panels, 10 meters long, with a total area of 37.7 square meters, a power generation capacity of 9.2 kW, and uses xenon-driven Hall effect thrusters for orbital maneuvering.

In this project, Turkey tested 24 types and 84 pieces of domestic equipment, including flight computers, power distribution units, interface control devices, star trackers, sun sensors, reaction wheels, electric propulsion subsystems, and communication equipment.

The Falcon 9 rocket's first-stage booster, designated B1076.15, used for this launch was successfully recovered again.

This is SpaceX's 71st space launch in 2024, including 68 Falcon 9s, 1 Falcon Heavy, and 2 Starships.

The fifth Starship test flight in history is imminent, scheduled for early August, and the new Super Heavy booster B12 has arrived at the launch pad.