Space & Astronomy

SpaceX launches two rockets within 48 hours

By T.K. Randall
June 26, 2017

Image: SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket Launch (2025)
Credit: Aubrey Gemignani / (PD) NASA The first rocket, which was carrying a Bulgarian satellite, launched from Florida on Friday, while the second, which took off from California on Sunday, was carrying 10 Iridium constellation satellites.

In both cases, the rocket's booster stage returned for a safe landing on terra firma.The firm's success means that a total of 13 Falcon 9 boosters have now been recovered for potential reuse, although SpaceX won't be able to reuse ever rocket that it launches.

Its ability to launch two rockets back-to-back within such a small time frame has also helped to allay fears about the firm's ambitious launch schedule over the next few years with plans to launch as many as 24 rockets this year and more than double that annually by 2019.

With a backlog of 70 missions worth $10bn however, the increase in pace will surely be welcome.


Source: BBC News

Tags: SpaceX