If you see someone post someone elseâs work, please say something. Huge thanks to all of you that shared my work, and to those that recognized my uncredited work and gave me a heads up. Timelapse of last nightâs Falcon 9 rocket launching some iridium NEXT satellites into orbit! Absolutely breathtaking experience to see this happen live. One Instagram user, put together a spectacular time-lapse video of the launch over Los Angeles. In this case, conditions were perfect: there was a little bit of light in the sky to illuminate the rocket, and it was bright and visible in the just-darkening sky.Īs the sun set over the ocean, thousands of spectators filmed the scene, and for days they flooded Facebook, Twitter and Instagram with pictures and videos. This rocket launches from one station in California and two in Florida, but it's rare that so many people can see it. On December 22, it launched to deliver 10 iridium satellites into orbit. Like other SpaceX Rockets, it delivers payloads to space. Falcon 9 is a reusable rocket that has launched 18 times in 2017, most recently out of Santa Barbara, California. The rocket, called Falcon 9, is a nine-engine rocket designed by Elon Musk's company SpaceX. Some apparently thought aliens in a UFO caused the sight, and the hashtag #aliens trended on Twitter. While the filmed passengers appear to know that the light in the sky is a rocket, other Californians were confused and surprised by the appearance.
The rocket landed about 10 minutes after liftoff."Oh shit, this guy is not paying attention, man!" the driver says of the car that fails to slow down. The first-stage booster turned around and headed back to the landing site after the second stage separated and continued to orbit with the satellites. SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket successfully lands upright at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. It was carrying 11 satellites for New Jersey-based Orbcomm. Monday's event is the first launch of the Falcon 9 rocket since a failed mission to the International Space Station in June. On Thursday, Musk tweeted that the fuel was "presenting some challenges." Three days later, he tweeted again that he chose to delay the launch one more day so that conditions would be slightly better. The launch had been delayed several times so SpaceX employees could fix glitches in the rocket's redesign, which was intended to give it more power.
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on Monday, Dec. Live video from LZ-1 /Ve6gEXfOdh- Elon Musk DecemThe launch The second stage has an engine that allows it to separate from the first-stage booster and deliver the cargo to the correct orbit. The first-stage booster has nine engines and is intended to land shortly after liftoff for reuse. (SpaceX)įalcon 9 has a two-stage configuration. This photo of the Falcon 9 rocket was taken Dec. In July, Elon Musk, chief executive of Hawthorne-based SpaceX, said a preliminary investigation found that the explosion was caused by the failure of a two-foot long strut that held down a helium bottle in the rocket's second stage. The rocket was carrying $110 million worth of supplies for NASA to the International Space Station.
Monday's launch was the first since June 28, when a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket disintegrated just two minutes after liftoff.
Before the launchĪ SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on a resupply mission to the orbiting International Space Station breaks apart June 28 after launching from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Here's a visual timeline of what led up to Monday's launch and landing. The historic landing of the first-stage booster back at Cape Canaveral could potentially lead to an era of cheaper space travel through reusable spacecraft. Monday night marked the first time a rocket has successfully landed during a commercial launch. Six months ago, an unmanned SpaceX rocket exploded while carrying supplies to the International Space Station. There was a lot riding on this launch's success. As the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket landed back at Cape Canaveral on Monday night after blasting 11 satellites into orbit, company employees clapped and cheered.