Last week, SpaceX’s Grasshopper rocket ship doubled its highest leap to date, achieving a height of 24 stories. It then hovered in place for 34 seconds before descending back to Earth where it made a safe and remarkably accurate landing.
The test took place at SpaceX’s rocket development facility in McGregor, Texas. Worth noting is that, beyond this being the highest ascent the rocket has ever achieved, its landing was the most accurate, too, as it was able to settle in on the centermost part of the launch pad when it touched back down.
For those unfamiliar with the 10-story-tall Grasshopper, the rocket falls under the title as one of SpaceX’s vertical and takeoff landing (VTVL) vehicles. It is made up of many notable features, including a Falcon 9 rocket first stage tank, Merlin 1D engine, four steel and aluminum landing legs with hydraulic dampers, and a steel support structure.
The goal in developing this sort of technology is to create fully and rapidly reusable rockets that will open up our space exploration capabilities while simultaneously reducing the cost of these missions.
Specific to the Grasshopper, SpaceX is hoping that a rocket like this can land intact, as opposed to burning up when re-entering the Earth’s atmosphere.
This is Grasshopper’s fourth test to date, with each showing more impressive than the last. In September 2012, Grasshopper got just 8.2 feet off the ground. In November, it achieved 17.7 feet. And in December, it got as high as 131 feet.
The 24 stories it achieved last week is equal to 262.8 feet.
Check out the Grasshopper in its latest test below:
Story via spacex.com
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