Elon Musk's SpaceX Launches Yet Another US Spy Satellite

Tesla Inc TSLA CEO Elon Musk-owned SpaceX on Sunday launched a reconnaissance satellite for the U.S. government, its second this year.

What Happened: SpaceX’s reusable rocket Falcon 9 launched the NROL-85 mission from Space Launch Complex-4E, located at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 9.13 a.m. ET.

SpaceX and the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) confirmed the development.

The Falcon 9 placed the national security payload to orbit and the reusable rocket booster safely returned at Landing Zone 4.

This is NRO’s second launch of the year and follows nine launches and 17 payloads placed in orbit in the past two years.

“Reusing the booster shows we are continuing to push the boundaries of what’s possible while delivering greater value. It reduces our costs, which reflects our commitment to using taxpayer dollars responsibly,” Col. Chad Davis, NRO’s director of the Office of Space Launch said.

The reconnaissance agency said NROL-85 is first time NRO has reused a rocket booster that was last launched to space in February.

SpaceX shared images and short clips of the liftoff, separation, first stage landing on its website and social media channels.

 

Falcon 9’s first stage has landed pic.twitter.com/76VIqs22Dx — SpaceX (SpaceX) April 17, 2022

Why it Matters: SpaceX has been ramping up satellite launches since the start of 2022.  Falcon 9 delivered 31 launches last year and completed 26 missions in 2020. It aims to complete more such runs this year.

Falcon 9 is the world’s first orbital-class reusable rocket. This brings down costs significantly as it allows the space agency to reuse the most expensive parts of the rocket.