SpaceX Readies for Rocket Launch and Recycling Test
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SpaceX(CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.) — SpaceX is hoping the third time is the charm for its historic rocket recycling test.
Elon Musk’s private space company is set to deliver 4,000 pounds of supplies to the International Space Station, including science experiments, food and a Lavazza espresso machine especially developed for space.
Launch time is set for Monday at 4:33 p.m. EDT from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
If it all goes according to plan, shortly after liftoff, the rocket will detach and begin a controlled descent to Earth and landing on a floating platform.
The Falcon 9 reusable rocket demonstrated in a test flight last year how it is supposed to perform. Video shows the rocket blasting off from the SpaceX test facility and soaring to 1,000 meters before coming back down to Earth for a controlled landing.
Two previous attempts failed. The first barely missed its target while the second attempt in inclement weather led to a fiery crash landing.
Having the ability to recycle rockets is something SpaceX founder Elon Musk said will “revolutionize access to space.”
“If one can figure out how to effectively reuse rockets just like airplanes, the cost of access to space will be reduced by as much as a factor of a hundred,” he said.
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