SpaceX is making a return to the launch pad with a mission to put its Falcon 9 orbital rocket into space, and then return its booster safely back to Earth, a spaceflight first.
Launching for the first time since being sidelined in June, when a Falcon 9 disintegrated shortly after liftoff, an upgraded version of the rocket is anticipating liftoff at 8:29 p.m. on Sunday from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
SpaceX on Saturday afternoon said the timing may still subject to change, but CEO Elon Musk said on Twitter that conditions were good for an “orbital launch and rocket landing at Cape Canaveral.”
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The Orbcomm mission is a relatively simple one, a good thing for a launch with such bold ambitions.
With upgrades that have increased its thrust at liftoff to 1.5 million pounds, the Falcon 9 will far exceed the power it needs to get Orbcomm's 11 communications satellites to a low orbit.
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