SpaceX Rocket Launch and Recycling Test Scrubbed
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NASA TV(CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.) — The astronauts at the International Space Station will have to wait a bit longer for their zero gravity espresso machine after Monday’s SpaceX launch was scrubbed due to inclement weather.
With just two minutes and 39 seconds left until a planned liftoff, the launch was stopped due to an anvil cloud moving within 10 nautical miles of the launch sight.
SpaceX’s Dragon was set to blast off on a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
The launch has been rescheduled for 4:10 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, but NASA said there’s just a 50 percent chance the weather conditions will be favorable for launch.
Dragon has vital cargo on board, including 4,000 pounds of supplies for astronauts at the International Space Station, including science experiments, food and a Lavazza espresso machine especially developed for space.
It will also be the third time SpaceX will attempt a historic rocket recycling test.
The first try 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.
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.
Musk said in a tweet Monday he still believes the likelihood of success for the test is “less than 50 percent.”
Odds of rocket landing successfully today are still less than 50%. The 80% figure by end of year is only bcs many launches ahead.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 13, 2015
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