SpaceX, the private rocket organization of high-tech entrepreneur Elon Musk, launched the first batch of 60 little satellites into low-Earth orbit on Thursday for Elon Musk’s new Starlink internet service.

A Falcon 9 rocket carrying the satellites blasted off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at about 10:30 p.m. local time (0230 GMT Friday), clearing a key obstacle for a business venture that Musk expectations will create genuinely necessary money for his bigger desire in space.

The launch came seven days after two consecutive countdowns for the mission were scrubbed – once because of high winds over the Cape and the next night so as to update satellite software and “triple-check” all systems.

The 60 satellites flown into space were released into orbit as arranged about an hour after Thursday’s launch, and the Falcon 9’s main-stage reusable booster rocket flew back to Earth for a successful landing on a barge floating in the Atlantic.

SpaceX said it would presumably take one more day to realize whether every one of the satellites sent were working appropriately. Each weighs around 500 pounds (227 kg), making them the heaviest payload carried aloft by SpaceX to date.

They represent the initial phase of an arranged constellation capable of beaming signals for high-speed internet service from space to paying customers around the globe.

Musk has said he sees the new Starlink venture as a significant new income stream for his California-based Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, whose launch service income he hopes to top out at around $3 billion every year.

He told reporters a week ago that makes Starlink pivotal in helping pay for his bigger goals of building up a new spacecraft to fly paying clients to the moon and for in the end endeavoring to colonize Mars.

“We think this is a key stepping stone on the way toward establishing a self-sustaining city on Mars and a base on the moon,” said billionaire Elon Musk, who is additionally CEO of automaker Tesla Inc.

At any rate 12 launches conveying comparable payloads are expected to accomplish constant internet coverage of the vast majority of the world, Musk said. Until further notice, Starlink is only authorized for U.S.

Musk faces stiff challenge. Airbus SE-supported OneWeb propelled its very own clutch of satellites in February, while LeoSat Enterprises and Canada’s Telesat are likewise attempting to build data networks.

In each network, the modest satellites orbit nearer to Earth than conventional communications satellites, a technological shift made conceivable by advances in laser technology and computer chips.

Elon Musk said SpaceX would start approaching clients not long from now or one year from now. Upwards of 2,000 satellites will be propelled every year, with the ultimate objective of placing up to 12,000 into orbit.