SpaceX Lands Falcon 9 in The Bahamas Again

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SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket made history by landing in The Bahamas for the second time ever on February 19th, 2026. This achievement marks a significant milestone in SpaceX's mission to launch and land rockets in unique locations, further expanding their Starlink satellite network.

Why it matters

The successful landing in The Bahamas demonstrates SpaceX's ability to navigate complex challenges and push the boundaries of space exploration. It opens up new possibilities for orbital trajectories and the continued growth of the Starlink megaconstellation, which is the largest off-Earth network ever assembled.

The details

The Falcon 9 booster, designated as Booster 1077, touched down for the 26th time, and the rocket's upper stage successfully deployed 29 Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit about 64 minutes after liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. This launch further expands the Starlink network, which now has nearly 9,700 satellites. The first successful landing in Bahamian waters occurred in February 2025 during a Starlink launch, but a controversial incident in April 2025 involving debris from a Starship test flight led to a temporary halt in SpaceX's rocket landings in the region as the nation conducted an environmental assessment. After addressing the necessary safety measures, SpaceX resumed rocket landings in Exuma Sound.

• On February 19, 2026, SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket landed in The Bahamas for the second time ever.
• In February 2025, SpaceX successfully landed a Falcon 9 rocket in Bahamian waters for the first time.
• In April 2025, the upper stage of a SpaceX Starship megarocket broke apart over the Caribbean, causing debris to rain down on The Bahamas and leading to a temporary halt in rocket landings in the region.