Space Exploration Technologies Corporation, or SpaceX, space transport company, Hawthorne, California, USA

On June 14, SpaceX's Grasshopper flew 325 m (1066 feet)--higher than Manhattan's Chrysler Building--before smoothly landing back on the pad. For the first time in this test, Grasshopper made use of its full navigation sensor suite with the F9-R closed loop control flight algorithms to accomplish a precision landing. Most rockets are equipped with sensors to determine position, but these sensors are generally not accurate enough to accomplish the type of precision landing necessary with Grasshopper.

Previous Grasshopper tests relied on the other rocket sensors but for this test, an additional, higher accuracy sensor was in the control loop. In other words, SpaceX was directly controlling the vehicle based on new sensor readings, adding a new level of accuracy in sensing the distance between Grasshopper and the ground, enabling a more precise landing.

Grasshopper is a 10-story Vertical Takeoff Vertical Landing (VTVL) vehicle designed to test the technologies needed to return a rocket back to Earth intact. While most rockets are designed to burn up on atmosphere reentry, SpaceX rockets are being designed not only to withstand reentry, but also to return to the launch pad for a vertical landing. The Grasshopper VTVL vehicle represents a critical step towards this goal.

Grasshopper consists of a Falcon 9 rocket first stage tank, Merlin 1D engine, four steel and aluminum landing legs with hydraulic dampers, and a steel support structure.

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On Monday, October 7th, Grasshopper completed its highest leap to date, rising to 744m altitude. The view above is taken from a single camera hexacopter, getting closer to the stage than in any previous flight.

Grasshopper is a 10-story Vertical Takeoff Vertical Landing (VTVL) vehicle designed to test the technologies needed to return a rocket back to Earth intact. While most rockets are designed to burn up on atmosphere reentry, SpaceX rockets are being designed not only to withstand reentry, but also to return to the launch pad for a vertical landing. The Grasshopper VTVL vehicle represents a critical step towards this goal.

Grasshopper consists of a Falcon 9 rocket first stage tank, Merlin 1D engine, four steel and aluminum landing legs with hydraulic dampers, and a steel support structure.

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The commercial space company has launched a second satellite in 2 months aboard an upgraded Falcon 9 rocket. It launched from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on January 6, 2014.

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NASA Commercial Crew Program partner Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, conducted a drop test of a Dragon test article in December. The capsule splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Morro Bay, Calif. The drop test enabled SpaceX engineers to evaluate the spacecraft's parachute deployment system as part of a milestone under its Commercial Crew Integrated Capability agreement with NASA's Commercial Crew Program.

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Relive SpaceX’s 2014 highlights: launching rockets, landing stages, and unveiling our next generation crewed spacecraft.

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SpaceX tried something audacious with Falcon-9 rocket launch to the International Space Station-- keep part of the rocket after its used! This has never been done before, and recovery this time was not successful, but steps have been made to attempt to recover huge and expensive rocket pieces that historically end up discarded in the environment. Why is this important to the mission of space travel? And why is failure not necessarily so? Kim Horcher discusses with Phil Torres (Scientist, host of Al Jazeera America's TechKnow) and Jason G. Goldman (Scientist, writer for Scientific American, BBC Future).

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Enjoy SpaceX launch footage in Ultra HD 4K. All footage used in this video was shot in 4K. If your connection is slow, toggle to 1080 HD for smoother playback.

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Elon Musk came oh-so-close to success with his first attempt to land a Falcon 9 rocket on a platform, but still pegs the changes of SpaceX's second try at 50-50. We explain why the mission is so difficult.

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Matthew Lynley talks backstage with the SpaceX team, winners of the 2016 Crunchies Award for Best Technology Achievement, about reusable rockets and humanity's future in space.

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Elon Musk is taking a big first step toward colonizing Mars. His company SpaceX announced plans to start sending spacecraft to the Red Planet as early as 2018. That means SpaceX could be the first private company to land hardware on another planet.

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'How Not to Land an Orbital Rocket' - explosive video of rocket failures produced and edited by SpaceX

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SpaceX is perhaps one of the most important companies in the world. When it comes to revolutionizing the space industry, SpaceX is the first thing that comes to my mind. From landing reusable rockets to putting humans on Mars, they are the pioneers of the future of space travel. They've achieved so much that people are even asking the question, "Who will get us to Mars first? NASA vs. SpaceX?" But, what does SpaceX do? And why are they important?

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Robots + astronauts = a match made in space exploration! Join us at 7 p.m. EDT for a new episode of NASA in Silicon Valley Live to hear our experts explain how we design & build robots to work with humans in space

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NASA is getting ready to send astronauts to explore more of the Moon as part of the Artemis program, and the agency has selected SpaceX to continue development of the first commercial human lander that will safely carry the next two American astronauts to the lunar surface.

The agency’s powerful Space Launch System rocket will launch four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft for their multi-day journey to lunar orbit. There, two crew members will transfer to the SpaceX human landing system (HLS) for the final leg of their journey to the surface of the Moon. After approximately a week exploring the surface, they will board the lander for their short trip back to orbit where they will return to Orion and their colleagues before heading back to Earth.

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