SpaceX’s reusable rocket completes short, controlled flight

Grasshopper hovers some 80 meters above the Earth, totally in control.

SpaceX

SpaceX has managed to shoot a reusable rocket 24 stories in the air, then land it safely enough so the rocket may live to fly another day, according to a press release from the company. The Grasshopper test platform completed its flight last Thursday, a step towards the company's plan for multi-use rockets and possibly cheaper space travel.

The rocket is powered by a Falcon 8 rocket first stage tank and a Merlin 1D engine; it sits on four steel and aluminum landing legs. In the video of the launch and landing, the 10-story high rocket exhibits a very controlled motion.

The Grasshopper tests took place in McGregor, Texas. It rose 80.1 meters, or 262.8 feet, into the air, hovered for 34 seconds, and then began its descent back to Earth. This is Grasshopper’s fourth such flight (it has been in testing since last September), having previously completed lifts to six feet, 17.7 feet, and 131 feet.