Gallery
Launched on July 14, 2014 from Cape Canaveral’s Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) located in Florida, the Orbcomm OG-2 mission marked the second time that SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket sported landing legs. The v1.1 version of the rocket completed its primary objective of the mission by deploying the satellites. After the separation of the rocket’s second-stage, a controlled-descent test was carried out of the Falcon 9’s first stage. The stage successfully decelerated from hypersonic velocity in Earth’s upper atmosphere, conducted reentry and landing burns, deployed its landing legs and “touched down” on the ocean surface. As was the case with the CRS-3 mission, the first stage tipped over and was not recovered. Photos courtesy: Mike Howard
