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SpaceX successfully tests reusable rocket dubbed ‘Grasshopper’ [VIDEO]
SpaceX successfully tests reusable rocket dubbed ‘Grasshopper’ [VIDEO] | Science RecorderSpaceX, the Southern California-based space company, has reportedly successfully tested a reusable rocket that it hopes will reduce the cost of traveling to space.
The company — officially known as Space Exploration Technologies Corporation — released a video Monday showing the test flight of its Grasshopper rocket, which took off and hovered twelve stories off the ground. After launch, it hovers in the air — and lands vertically.
“The 12-story flight marks a significant increase over the height and length of hover of Grasshopper’s previous test flights, which took place earlier this fall. In September, Grasshopper flew to 1.8 meters (6 feet), and in November, it flew to 5.4 meters (17.7 feet/2 stories) including a brief hover,” SpaceX said in statement issued Sunday.
The test was conducted December 17 at SpaceX’s rocket development facility in McGregor, Texas. The company had conducted a number of tests and this was widely seen as its most advanced test to date.
Elon Musk, the billionaire founder of the company, tweeted on Monday, saying the launch was a success.
“To provide a little perspective on the size of Grasshopper, we added a 6ft cowboy to the rocket,” he wrote on Twitter.
SpaceX's Grasshopper takes a 12-story leap towards full and rapid rocket reusability in a test flight conducted December 17, 2012 at SpaceX's rocket development facility in McGregor, Texas. Grasshopper, a vertical takeoff and landing vehicle (VTVL), rose 131 feet (40 meters), hovered and landed safely on the pad using closed loop thrust vector and throttle control. The total test duration was 29 seconds.
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