By Ashley Young-
Elon Musk’s SpaceX company successfully launched a satellite into space from California in a scene that has highly woeed social media users in the process
The Falcon 9 rocket took Argentine satellite SAOCOM 1A into orbit from Vandenberg Air Force Base, on the coast northwest of Los Angeles. Excited residents in Los Angeles have been sharing photos of the launch which lit up the skies over the state.
The SpaceX mission, spearheaded by billionaire Elon Musk, marks the 62nd flight of the Falcon 9- a rocket designed to land back on Earth for reuse. The pad at the Vandenberg Air Force Base west of Los Angeles was the 30th landing of a rocket booster for the company. It was also the 17th launch of the year. Space X mission puts is reportedly on track for its stated ambition of 24 launches in 2018.
The 1600kg satellite was developed with advanced and sophisticated capabilities that enables a full observation of earth, and allows Argentina’s space agency CONAE to monitor the planet’s weather conditions and evaluate the best strategies for mitigating the effects of natural disasters 385 miles above the Earth’s surface. Past missions have taken place at Cape Canaveral in Florida, home of NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.
The company also plans to send billionaire Yusaku Maezawa, the founder of Japanese online clothing retailers Zozotown, around the moon on SpaceX’s first commercial flight of this kind.
The trip, expected to take a week is set to be tested within the next “two to three years”. Mr Maezawa, who boasts a £2.2 billion fortune, will ride aboard SpaceX’s enormous, reusable Big Falcon Rocket or “Big F——- Rocket” launcher, which Musk hopes will eventually ferry the first human colonists to Mars.
It also plans to send billionaire Yusaku Maezawa, the founder of Japanese online clothing retailers Zozotown, around the moon on SpaceX’s first commercial flight of this kind.
The trip is expected to take a week and could be tested within the next “two to three years”.Mr Maezawa, who boasts a £2.2 billion fortune, will ride aboard SpaceX’s enormous, reusable Big Falcon Rocket or “Big F——- Rocket” launcher, which Musk hopes will eventually ferry the first human colonists to Mars.
The launch of the record was trailed by a blue and white glow in the night sky, left many locals questioning if they were witnessing a UFO. The rocket’s first – and reusable – stage landed successfully, marking the first West Coast landing for a booster