The launch continues SpaceX’s comeback from a launch disaster last June in which a Falcon 9 blew up over the ocean.
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The Falcon 9 Rocket came down with a flashing light and smoke, when the environment clear it had already landed on the X sign in the Ocean Platform. The JCSAT-14 was created to send telecommunications signals across the Asia-Pacific region. This marks the second time SpaceX has been able to successfully land its 23-story tall first stage rocket back onto the floating drone ship. Even Musk voiced his doubts before the mission.
The company, which successfully achieved a first landing at sea in April, had played down expectations about the latest mission.
The rocket was carrying a communications satellite – called the JCSAT-14 – that will be operated by a Japanese telecoms company.
About two and a half minutes after launch the rocket’s first stage shut down, separated, flipped around and headed toward the surface.
The JCSAT-14 satellite will hover more than 22,000 miles above Earth in geostationary orbit, delivering broadcast, data and internet service to Japan and beyond. Before the launch, SpaceX had stated that a successful landing was “unlikely” due to the high speeds.
“This is recovery, the Falcon has landed”, said one of the members of the launch team.
SpaceX is hoping to ramp up the number of launches.
What’s next for Elon Musk and SpaceX?
SpaceX expects to start reusing its unmanned Falcon rockets as early as this summer to save money and lower costs.
“Now, SpaceX has both demonstrated that it can land the Falcon 9 at sea, and that the company can repeat the process”, The Verge reports.
Last week, SpaceX won its first contract to launch a US military satellite, breaking a 10-year-old monopoly held by United Launch Alliance, a partnership of Lockheed Martin Corp and Boeing Co.
But that’s not all of Elon Musk’s ambitions for SpaceX.
A handout picture made available by SpaceX shows a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifting off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, USA, 06 May 2016.
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SpaceX is now focusing on cutting rates down of launching services by implementing the technology of reusing its rockets.
