SpaceX launches rocket and makes historic landing in Florida

The landing stage of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket descended back toward the landing pad at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on the east coast of Florida Monday night amid a flurry of control room excitement and apprehension.

It was the first flight for his California-based company since a rocket failure in June that destroyed a cargo ship being carried on a resupply mission bound for the International Space Station.

Though attempting to land its reusable rocket was only the mission’s secondary objective, the milestone proves next generation space travel can be both significantly cheaper and more environmental than the off-Earth missions of the 20th century.

Rival company Blue Origin, a space start-up founded by Amazon.com (AMZN.O) Chief Executive Jeff Bezos, nailed a similar return rocket landing test last month.

Speaking to the press following the Falcon 9’s landing, Musk said: “It’s a revolutionary moment”. Then the roar became deafening, as TV cameras showed the first-stage booster landing on extended legs at its new, dedicated landing zone. Because Falcon 9 travels faster than any other rocket in history, the ORBCOMM satellites were deployed into orbit in less than three minutes. Landing upright, meanwhile, means they can land anywhere, not just at sea. But the real payoff came when the rocket returned to Earth, landing safely and vertically on a landing pad not far from where it had launched only 10 minutes earlier.

SpaceX can now launch its Falcon 9 rocket and get its 1st Stage back intact.

In a pre-launch blog post, the company CEO detailed the Falcon 9’s latest changes, including an increased boost thrust, deep cryo oxidizer, and large upper-stage engine bell; SpaceX also made reliability enhancements like a redundant stage separation system and greater structural safety margins.

Musk said a viable reusable rocket could dramatically lower the cost of spaceflight, and make his goal of building a city on Mars actually achievable. The company’s rockets cost between $60 and $90 million.

In the video below (starting at around 32:30 in), though, you can see the SpaceX Falcon 9 descend and stick the landing, a moment followed by an eruption of cheers at the company’s headquarters.