Following an historic launch of a recycled rocket, Elon Musk spoke about the future of SpaceX and the impact of reusable rocket technology.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER — In a historic milestone, SpaceX successfully launched and landed a previously used orbital rocket booster for the first time Thursday evening.
The launch is considered historic because relaunching commercial booster rockets on a regular basis could lower the cost of commercial space activity and space exploration. The launch and landing on a barge in the ocean went off without a hitch, lifting off as the launch window opened.
Shortly after launch, SpaceX founder Elon Musk went live on the company's webcast to call the event "an incredible milestone in the history of space."
Orlando Sentinel photographer Red Huber talks about photographing SpaceX's historic launch of a used orbital rocket behind an American flag.
In a post-launch news conference at Kennedy Space Center, he said he was surprisingly calm.
"I was nervous that I wasn't nervous enough," Musk said. "It was like a nested level of fear. It worked out as well as we could expect."
Last year, the same rocket took cargo to the International Space Station, then returned to Earth for a smooth landing on the same barge. That was the first time SpaceX recovered a rocket booster, a feat it has duplicated multiple times since then.