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Lucky Number 13: SpaceX Sends Telstar Satellite Into Orbit

SpaceX launched its Falcon 9 rocket carrying the payload from Space Launch Complex 40 in Florida.

Lucky Number 13: SpaceX Sends Telstar Satellite Into Orbit
Elon Musk, chief executive officer of Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX), speaks at the unveiling of the Manned Dragon V2 Space Taxi in Hawthorne, California, U.S. (Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg)

(Bloomberg) -- Space Exploration Technologies Corp. launched a satellite for customer Telstar early Sunday, marking the 13th launch of the year for the closely held company led by Elon Musk.

SpaceX launched its Falcon 9 rocket carrying the payload from Space Launch Complex 40 in Florida at 1:50 a.m. local time. The satellite was deployed approximately 32 minutes after liftoff and the rocket’s first stage later landed on the droneship named "Of Course I Still Love You" in the Atlantic Ocean, the company said on its website.

Lucky Number 13: SpaceX Sends Telstar Satellite Into Orbit

SpaceX is targeting roughly 30 missions this year, up from a record 18 in 2017. The Hawthorne, California-based company’s valuation has climbed to about $25 billion, making it the third-most valuable venture-backed startup in the U.S. after Uber Technologies Inc. and Airbnb Inc. Musk serves as chief executive officer of SpaceX and Tesla Inc., the electric-car maker.

--With assistance from Chris Dolmetsch.

To contact the reporters on this story: Dana Hull in San Francisco at dhull12@bloomberg.net;Jim Jia in Sydney at jjia1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Craig Trudell at ctrudell1@bloomberg.net, Will Davies

©2018 Bloomberg L.P.