SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has shared an interesting video of the Falcon 9 rocket launch, which demonstrates the start of the NROL-186 mission. This mission, which launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, delivered the latest spy satellites to orbit for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO).
The launch took place on 29 June. The video shows the Falcon 9 rising through the clouds against an orange sky. Musk stressed that the video has not been processed in any way.
This was the eighth flight for the first stage of the Falcon 9 rocket, which has already carried out Crew-7, CRS-29, PACE, Transporter-10, EarthCARE and two Starlink missions. SpaceX also reported on social media that in the first six months of this year, the Falcon made 67 launches, delivering about 900 tonnes of cargo to orbit. For comparison, 43 launches were made in the same period last year.
SpaceX, founded in 2002, has developed a system that allows the reuse of first-stage launch vehicles, which significantly reduces launch costs and makes orbital missions more affordable for businesses and organisations. The system involves the first stage of the rocket landing vertically on the ground or on a barge in the ocean after the upper stage is deployed in orbit. The launch vehicle is then inspected, repaired and re-launched. Some Falcon first stages have already completed more than 20 flights.
SpaceX is currently testing its next-generation rocket, the Starship, which is ten times more powerful than the Falcon 9 and is the most powerful rocket ever flown. After completing testing and obtaining a licence, Starship will be able to deliver crew and cargo to the Moon and possibly Mars.
Earlier, we reported on how a SpaceX rocket punched a hole in the atmosphere and disrupted GPS.
Based on materials from digitaltrends.com
