ORLANDO, FLORIDA ¨C Elon Musk¡¯s SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from California on Monday carrying 64 small satellites into low orbit around the Earth, which the company called the largest-ever ¡°rideshare¡± mission by a U.S.-based rocket.
The mission, dubbed SSO-A, also marked the third voyage to space for the same Falcon 9 rocket ¡ª another milestone for SpaceX¡¯s cost-cutting reusable rocket technology.
The Falcon 9 blasted off from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California at 10:34 a.m. local time (18:34 GMT) carrying satellites from 34 different companies, government agencies, and universities, including the University of Illinois.
SpaceX said the mission was ¡°one of the most complex and intricate endeavors¡± for Seattle-based start-up Spaceflight, the ride-share company that arranged passage for each satellite maker.
The mission comes days after India fired a rocket carrying 31 satellites into space.
After the launch, the Falcon 9¡¯s first-stage booster returned to earth as planned, landing on a ship off the coast of Southern California, according to a live video of the flight.
However, the Falcon 9¡¯s payload fairing ¡ª an enclosure that protected the satellites during launch ¡ª missed a landing net on the barge and ended up in the ocean.
¡°Falcon fairing halves missed the net, but touched down softly in the water,¡± Musk, SpaceX¡¯s chief executive officer, said on Twitter. He said the boat was moving to pick them up.
¡°Plan is to dry them out & launch again. Nothing wrong with a little swim,¡± Musk, who is also the CEO of Tesla Inc, said on Twitter.
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