SpaceX Launches Three Large Direct-to-Cell Satellites for AST SpaceMobile

SpaceX successfully launched three large AST SpaceMobile BlueBird satellites on a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on June 17. The rocket's first stage, completing its 29th mission, successfully landed on a droneship in the Atlantic Ocean.

These satellites will form AST SpaceMobile's planned constellation. This constellation aims to create a space-based cellular broadband network. The network will provide 4G and 5G connectivity directly to standard, unmodified smartphones from orbit. The launch quadruples AST SpaceMobile's next-generation BlueBird satellites in orbit. It advances the company's goal of providing continuous global coverage.