SES-9 was built by Boeing Satellite Systems and is created to operate for 15 years in geosynchronous orbit. SpaceX said before liftoff that the odds of success on this landing attempt were low, but Musk later tweeted that he felt that there was “a good chance” they would stick the landing next time.
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SpaceX said a reusable rocket would dramatically reduce the cost of space transport.
SpaceX was aiming to deliver the satellite as high as 24,233 miles (39,000 km) above Earth and still have enough fuel to land the first stage of the Falcon rocket on a platform floating about 400 miles (645 km) off Florida’s coast.
As for the SES satellite, the primary goal of the mission, the launch was a success.
“Rocket landed hard on the droneship”, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk wrote in a Twitter update.
The Washington Post noted that while much of the attention was on SpaceX’s landing attempt, the main aim of this mission was to deliver a satellite for a European communications firm that would offer Internet service and high definition video to Southeast Asia. The most recent delay came on Tuesday when the SpaceX chose to launch the satellite on Friday.
After coping with a wayward boat, unfavorable winds and propellant problems, SpaceX finally launched the SES-9 telecommunication satellite on its Falcon 9 rocket today and then tried to land the rocket’s first stage on an oceangoing platform. SpaceX and its founder Elon Musk cautioned prior to this launch that “a successful landing is not expected,” (PDF link) due to the mission’s “unique” profile, which involves deploying a satellite payload at a very high altitude. Just two months ago, in December 2015, SpaceX managed to land a Falcon 9 first stage on terra firma at Cape Canaveral, marking the first time this had ever been done during an orbital launch. This was the company’s fourth attempt to land a rocket on a floating platform at sea.
The Falcon-Heavy rocket, which is made up of three first-stage boosters, is also expected to make its debut before the end of the year, and the Dragon is expected to carry astronauts to the ISS for the first time in early 2017, the British media outlet added. Martin Halliwell, SES chief technology officer, told reporters before the first launch try.
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There were plenty of cheers, nonetheless, as the second-stage successfully lifted the satellite higher and higher, and even more when the satellite separated successfully in full camera view.
