Elon Musk is a pretty ambitious guy. Although now known primarily for his SpaceX aerospace manufacturer and transport company and Tesla electric cars, many forget that Musk also founded Paypal and envisioned the hyperloop. It's fair to say, when Musk puts his mind on something, no matter how ambitious, he will find a way to succeed. However, many balked when his company, SpaceX, embarked on a mission to launch a rocket deep in to space, only to have it return to its launch pad upright. Yet, Musk proved them wrong again, finally accomplishing this magnificent feat. This occurred after crushing failed attempts, but marks the first time in history a rocket has travelled this far into space, to return, upright, to its launch pad.
On December 21st, in Cape Canaveral, Florida, Musk and his SpaceX team achieved the long sought-after goal and made a massive step forward toward reusable rockets. However, this is not the first time a rocket has landed upright in such a fashion. In November, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos's space flight company, Blue Origin, announced that it had accomplished a similar feat with its New Shepard rocket. According to The Verge, Musk's rocket traveled further into space and did so much faster than Bezos's rocket.
Regarding the accomplishments of both companies, president of NexGenSpace, Charles Miller, said, "I think it's very clear the future is reusable space, and the rest of the world is playing catch up to the innovation that's taking place in America's space entrepreneurs."
The landing is a huge step forward for the reusable rocket industry, and particularly for Musk, whose SpaceX stands to profit greatly from this endeavor. According to Musk, the Falcon 9 cost $16 million to create, but only $200,000 to fuel. If the rockets could be routinely re-used, this would be a major blow to the many industries dependent on creating new rockets. Competing launch providers will likely have to try to adopt Musk's technology and adapt to the new marketplace, according to The Verge.
