SpaceX's rocket launches have been mired in uncertainty - until now. Elon Musk's company had to postpone its latest launch on February 18 due to technical difficulties, however, the delay proved a mere bump in the road to the International Space Station (ISS).
On February 19 the Falcon 9 rocket launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, landing successfully nine minutes later. Moments after landing, it was determined that the Falcon 9 had successfully carried the SpaceX Dragon supply ship into orbit - where it has now begun its travel to the International Space Station. The Dragon is designed to carry cargo such as solar panels to the ISS, but is also equipped to one day facilitate the movement of people to and from the station.
The significance of the rocket's successful landing comes from SpaceX's core belief that reusable rockets are the key to reducing the cost of space access. The cost of a rocket is roughly equivalent to that of a commercial airliner, but with none of the possibilities for long-term usage. Once launched, a rocket is usually jettisoned into the ocean, drastically increasing the cost per supply mission.
SpaceX's founder, Elon Musk, believes that reducing the cost of supply rockets is key to improving our ability to explore space. He says that a "...fully reusable vehicle has never been done before. That really is the fundamental breakthrough needed to revolutionise access to space.”
This success comes in the wake of uncertainty surrounding the integrity of reusable rockets. In September 2016, an 'anomaly' had occurred while loading the fuel for the SpaceX Falcon. The rocket exploded on the launchpad, with a blast strong enough to shake buildings several miles away.
Yesterday's launch is the 10th supply mission undertaken by SpaceX, in partnership with space agency Nasa. In total, nine of SpaceX's missions have had successful landings and in 2017, the company hopes to build upon this success with plans to launch a supply rocket every two weeks.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
