SpaceX launches satellite on Falcon 9, 18th launch of 2018

Elon Musk-led space exploration startup SpaceX has launched Qatar's Es’hail-2 telecommunications satellite aboard a Falcon 9 rocket, marking its 18th launch of the year. The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday. The satellite was deployed to a geostationary transfer orbit about 32 minutes after liftoff, the company said.