Forty payloads ride into orbit on SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket

SpaceX launched a German environmental mapping satellite and 39 co-passenger spacecraft Friday, dodging thunderstorms near Cape Canaveral that threatened to keep the Falcon 9 rocket on the ground. The rideshare mission, named Transporter 4, lifted off at 12:24:17 p.m. EDT (1624:17 GMT) from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Forecasters initially predicted just a 30% chance weather would be acceptable for launch Friday, but SpaceX proceeded with the countdown, and clouds lifted just enough to make it safe for the Falcon 9 to blast off from Florida’s Space Coast. More

(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Apr 2)