Rocket Launch Today: Did It Actually Happen, and Where?

Generated Title: SpaceX's "Record-Breaking" Launch Cadence? More Like a Race to the Bottom.

Alright, let's get one thing straight: everyone's creaming their jeans over Florida's "record-breaking" 100 rocket launches this year. Big deal. Col. Brian Chatman is out there telling everyone "we are breaking records across the board." Yeah, records for polluting the upper atmosphere and turning space into a giant junkyard. Congratulations, guys.

The Starlink Saturation

SpaceX launched another Falcon 9 from Cape Canaveral, shoving 29 more Starlink satellites into orbit. And Vandenberg? They tossed up 28 more. That's on top of the what, 9,000 already up there? Nine thousand. Is anyone even stopping to ask if we need that many? Or are we just blindly applauding Elon as he plasters the night sky with his personal broadband network?

And here's the kicker: they call these boosters "reusable." Okay, maybe they land them on drone ships – "Of Course I Still Love You" and "A Shortfall of Gravitas," real cute names, by the way. But what about the environmental cost of refurbishing them? The fuel? The sheer amount of resources poured into this endless cycle of launch, land, repeat? Nobody seems to care about that little detail.

SpaceX says they have 8 million Starlink customers. That's it? Eight million? For all this effort? For all the light pollution ruining astrophotography for the rest of us? Let's be real, it ain't worth it.

The "Space Coast" Congestion

Chatman is already predicting 100-120 launches next year. And by 2035-2040? A casual 300 launches a year. Three. Hundred. From the Space Coast alone. So, what happens then? Do we need air traffic control for space? Are we going to have orbital fender-benders? I can already see the headlines: "Debris Field Over Florida After Two Starlink Satellites Collide."

They're patting themselves on the back for launching more rockets than the rest of the world combined (excluding Vandenberg, of course, gotta give California some credit). But quantity doesn't equal quality. It just equals more noise, more pollution, and more risk. It's like celebrating the guy who eats the most hot dogs at a contest – sure, he "won," but at what cost?

And all this hype about Blue Origin and New Glenn? Please. They're still playing catch-up while SpaceX is already clogging up low Earth orbit. Maybe once Bezos actually gets something consistently off the ground, I'll start paying attention.

The Blind Faith

I read Brooke Edwards' article in Florida Today. She seems pretty jazzed about all this. Quote: "'Breaking records across the board.' SpaceX launches Florida's 100th rocket of the year" Yeah, well, I'm breaking records for the amount of caffeine I consume just to stay awake through this endless barrage of "innovation."

Look, I get it. Space is cool. Rockets are cool. But there's a point where "cool" turns into reckless. And honestly, we're way past that point. They're so busy congratulating themselves that they don't even realize the mess they're making. They expect us to believe this nonsense, and honestly...

It's a Goddamn Circus