SpaceX launched a National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) satellite for the first time May 1, and achieved a secondary goal by landing the rocket’s first stage in Florida.
SpaceX lands its upgraded Falcon 9 first stage Dec. 21, 2015, at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. Photo: SpaceX.SpaceX lands its upgraded Falcon 9 first stage Dec. 21, 2015, at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. Photo: SpaceX.
A Falcon 9 two-stage rocket lifted off with the classified payload at 7:15 a.m. Eastern time from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. After stage separation, the first stage descended safely to SpaceX’s landing zone at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the fourth time a Falcon 9 has landed at that company site.
“Launch and landing of the NRO spy satellite was good,” SpaceX founder Elon Musk tweeted. “Tough call, as high-altitude wind shear was at 98.6 percent of the theoretical load limit.”
SpaceX said it plans to inspect the first stage and prepare it for another mission later in 2017.
NRO Director Betty Sapp called the launch a “great ride” and SpaceX a “great partner.”
The launch, designated NROL-76, is the second of five NRO launches slated for 2017. The next one is scheduled for Aug. 14 from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.