SpaceX set for another Falcon 9 landing attempt; new Planetary Resources satellite on board for Space Station

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The “autonomous spaceport drone ship” that SpaceX built to recover the Falcon 9 first stage.
The “autonomous spaceport drone ship” that SpaceX built to recover the Falcon 9 first stage.

Update, 1:30 p.m.: Monday’s launch has been scrubbed due to weather. Another launch will be attempted on Tuesday at 1:10 p.m. Pacific.

This week’s planned SpaceX launch from Cape Canaveral, Fla., is all about second chances.

As part of the launch, SpaceX will try again to land its Falcon 9 rocket on a barge in the Atlantic Ocean, following an unsuccessful attempt in January. If successful, it would be a key milestone in efforts to make commercial space more economical by recovering and reusing booster rockets.

Here’s how it will work, if all goes according to plan.

SpaceX diagram of the Falcon 9 launch and recovery.
SpaceX diagram of the Falcon 9 launch and recovery. (Click for larger image.)

Meanwhile, on board the Dragon capsule, headed for the International Space Station, will be a test satellite from Seattle-area asteroid mining company Planetary Resources. The company is looking to recover from the loss of its earlier satellite as part of the October explosion of an Orbital Sciences Antares rocket lifting off from Wallops, Va.

The launch is set for 1:33 p.m. Pacific time today, and the webcast is available here.

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