A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket successfully launched a 9,000-pound satellite into orbit on Monday evening from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
The reusable rocket’s first stage landed back on the Just Read the Instructions droneship in the Atlantic Ocean roughly eight minutes after takeoff, marking SpaceX’s 170th recovery of an orbital class rocket.
The first stage booster on the Falcon 9 rocket in Monday’s mission was previously used in three Stalink launches, SES-22, and ispace’s HAKUTO-R Mission 1.
SPACEX RAISES MORE THAN $750 MILLION IN NEW FUNDING WITH A VALUATION OF $137 BILLION
Hispasat’s Amazonas Nexus satellite was deployed roughly 36 minutes after launch.
The Spanish company said that the satellite will cover the “entire American continent, Greenland and the North and South Atlantic corridors and will be focused on connectivity services in remote areas and in air and maritime mobility environments.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS
SpaceX contracts with private companies like Hispasat to carry cargo into space, and also conducts missions for the U.S. Space Force and other government agencies.
The Falcon 9, which was used on Monday, is the company’s primary reusable rocket. The Falcon Heavy, which is essentially three Falcon 9s strapped together, is deployed for heavier payloads.