Space

Hitch a ride on SpaceX's rocket as it returns to Earth (plus spectacular new photos)

Hitch a ride on SpaceX's rocket as it returns to Earth (plus spectacular new photos)
SpaceX considers the latest landing of its Falcon 9 rocket as experimental
SpaceX considers the latest landing of its Falcon 9 rocket as experimental
View 16 Images
The Falcon 9 takes off
1/16
The Falcon 9 takes off
As part of the mission, SpaceX's Falcon 9 booster delivered a telecommunications satellite into geosynchronous transfer orbit.
2/16
As part of the mission, SpaceX's Falcon 9 booster delivered a telecommunications satellite into geosynchronous transfer orbit.
SpaceX considers the latest landing of its Falcon 9 rocket as experimental
3/16
SpaceX considers the latest landing of its Falcon 9 rocket as experimental
SpaceX's Falcon 9 takes off on May 27
4/16
SpaceX's Falcon 9 takes off on May 27
As part of the mission, SpaceX's Falcon 9 booster delivered a telecommunications satellite into geosynchronous transfer orbit.
5/16
As part of the mission, SpaceX's Falcon 9 booster delivered a telecommunications satellite into geosynchronous transfer orbit.
The Falcon 9 takes off
6/16
The Falcon 9 takes off
SpaceX considers the latest landing of its Falcon 9 rocket as experimental
7/16
SpaceX considers the latest landing of its Falcon 9 rocket as experimental
The Falcon 9 takes off from Cape Canaveral
8/16
The Falcon 9 takes off from Cape Canaveral
As part of the mission, SpaceX's Falcon 9 booster delivered a telecommunications satellite into geosynchronous transfer orbit.
9/16
As part of the mission, SpaceX's Falcon 9 booster delivered a telecommunications satellite into geosynchronous transfer orbit.
SpaceX considers the latest landing of its Falcon 9 rocket as experimental
10/16
SpaceX considers the latest landing of its Falcon 9 rocket as experimental
11/16
SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket booster
12/16
SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket booster
SpaceX considers the latest landing of its Falcon 9 rocket as experimental
13/16
SpaceX considers the latest landing of its Falcon 9 rocket as experimental 
SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket booster in action
14/16
SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket booster in action
SpaceX considers the latest landing of its Falcon 9 rocket experimental
15/16
SpaceX considers the latest landing of its Falcon 9 rocket experimental
SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket booster in action
16/16
SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket booster in action
View gallery - 16 images

SpaceX's landing of its Falcon 9 rocket on a drone ship last Friday was the third time the company has pulled off such a feat. But this time the company has provided a different perspective, with an onboard camera capturing the rocket slicing through the atmosphere and coming down to rest on a sea barge in the Atlantic Ocean.

The reusable rocket rivalry between Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and Elon Musk's SpaceX might be focused on not just engineering exploits, but possibly cinematography credentials, too. Earlier this month Blue Origin released video shot from a camera onboard its New Shepard rocket as it made a powered landing, and now SpaceX has followed suit.

In the video we see the Falcon 9 first-stage rocket's vanes fold out to serve as steering foils, which combine with a series of controlled burns to guide the rocket down to safety. The video is sped up and therefore over pretty quickly, but it does give a good sense of the low margin for error that goes with trying to land a rocket on a barge ship bobbing about in the middle of the ocean.

SpaceX considers the landing experimental, and says that this one was particularly tricky as the mission involved bringing the rocket back at a higher velocity and without as much spare fuel for braking.

SpaceX has also released a set of crisp photos of this latest mission, which saw the Falcon 9 booster deliver a telecommunications satellite into geosynchronous transfer orbit.

You can watch the video below.

Source: SpaceX

First-stage landing | Onboard camera

View gallery - 16 images
4 comments
4 comments
Martin Winlow
Awesome...
mhpr262
I wish SpaceX developed some kind of small, heavily armoured ship, on which once could witness the landing from really, really close by - like a hundred yards or so. The rocket may be huge and heavy , but it is only thin aluminium, no match for armor plate.
Gabriel Pérez Aguiar
I would have really liked to see the whole run from the start to the end without the speed up
Arf
Amazing!