SpaceX is targeting the Falcon Heavy launch of NROL-97 for 11:53 p.m. EDT on October 1, 2026, from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. That is 03:53 GMT on October 2. SpaceX lists a backup opportunity for October 2 at 11:48 p.m. EDT.
SpaceX targets October 1 for NROL-97
The launch is scheduled from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at Kennedy Space Center. NROL-97 is a mission for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), the U.S. agency responsible for reconnaissance activities from space.
NROL-97 is an NRO mission
The NRO describes NROL-97 as its first launch aboard SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy. The mission’s payload details are classified.
Falcon Heavy’s planned side-booster landings
SpaceX’s plan calls for Falcon Heavy’s two side boosters to land at Landing Zones 1 and 2 (LZ-1 and LZ-2) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The boosters have different flight histories: SpaceX lists one as making its second flight and the other its fourth.
SpaceX’s scheduled webcast
SpaceX says its webcast is scheduled to begin about 10 minutes before liftoff.
