Watch live: SpaceX Launches A Rocket And Tries To Land It On A Floating “Drone Ship”

update 4:33 p.m. ET: At just three minutes earlier than liftoff, engineers scrubbed the launch as a result of dangerous climate. The crew will try again the next day at roughly the same time.

Elon Musk’s private spaceflight firm SpaceX will attempt an experimental rocket touchdown this afternoon that, if a success, will deliver SpaceX closer to with the ability to reuse rockets after area launches. The maneuver is extremely advanced—the Falcon 9 rocket will mechanically coordinate a rendezvous with a robotic ship in the Atlantic Ocean, after which attempt to land itself vertically on deck—however the payoff shall be enormous if SpaceX can recover the rocket for later launches, relatively than letting it fall into the ocean and become trash. If all goes consistent with plan, the rocket will carry off at 4:33 p.m. ET, with the barge landing attempt following about 10 minutes after.

A previous touchdown attempt by using SpaceX, on January 10, ended in an excellent fireball when the rocket’s aerodynamic fins, which keep watch over its descent to the floating platform, ran out of hydraulic fluid just sooner than touchdown. See the Vine beneath:

nowadays’s major mission is to ship provides and science experiments to the world house Station. The Falcon 9 rocket will launch the cargo pill on its way, then detach and try the barge landing. The experimental landing is cut loose the resupply mission, if you want to now not be affected will have to the rocket fail to land gently.

consistent with SpaceX, the maneuver is “like seeking to steadiness a rubber broomstick for your hand in the midst of a wind storm.” As I wrote previously, SpaceX hypothetically will be able to store hundreds of thousands of dollars through reusing its autos if it may efficiently land its rockets after house launches, fairly than allowing them to fall into the ocean, as is established. “i think if we can get better the stage intact and relaunch it, the prospective is there for a very innovative influence in space transport prices,” Musk mentioned final 12 months. SpaceX at present works with NASA to ferry astronauts and cargo to and from the world house Station. the corporate can be building a private spaceport in Texas to give a boost to business missions.

Watch a live movement of the launch, scheduled for four:33 p.m. ET from Cape Canaveral, Florida, in the video participant above. i will replace this submit with news of the barge touchdown.