SpaceX Confirms Falcon 9 1st-Stage Landing Attempt on Land

Today SpaceX confirmed that the company is targeting the launch of its ninth NASA Commercial Resupply Services mission (CRS-9) aboard a Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. on Monday, Jul. 18 at 12:45 a.m. EDT.

As with prior NASA Commercial Resupply Service (CRS) missions, Falcon-9 will launch with an instantaneous launch window. If needed, a backup launch opportunity is available on Jul. 20 at 12:00 a.m. EDT.

In addition to the primary mission of delivering critical cargo to the International Space Station, SpaceX is attempting the secondary mission of landing the first stage of the Falcon 9 rocket on land at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station’s Landing Zone 1. SpaceX first landed a first stage booster at Landing Zone 1 on Dec. 22, 2015 as part of the ORBCOMM-2 mission. SpaceX has previously successfully recovered first stage rockets from three missions at sea using the company’s Autonomous Spaceport Drone Ships. Landing Zone 1 is built on the former site of Space Launch Complex 13, a U.S. Air Force rocket and missile testing range.

As with the return of the first stage from the ORBCOMM-2 mission, there is the possibility that residents of northern and central Brevard County, Fla. may hear one or more sonic booms during landing. A sonic boom is a brief thunder-like noise a person on the ground hears when an aircraft or other vehicle flies overhead faster than the speed of sound.

Residents of the communities of Cape Canaveral, Cocoa, Cocoa Beach, Courtenay, Merritt Island, Mims, Port Canaveral, Port St. John, Rockledge, Scottsmoor, Sharpes, and Titusville in Brevard County, Fla. are most likely to hear a sonic boom, although what residents experience will depend on weather conditions and other factors.