Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) said a recent test of its Grasshopper vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) reusable rocket prototype leaped 325 meters, more than four times higher than its previous attempt.
SpaceX spokeswoman Christina Ra said Tuesday in an email the test took place June 14. Multiple outlets reported on the launch after the company posted video of a Grasshopper test on its YouTube channel.
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| Grasshopper rose to 325 meters in its most recent test. Photo: SpaceX. |
Grasshopper in March rose to 80 meters while hovering for approximately 34 seconds. Ra said she didn’t have a time for June’s hover. She also declined to comment on when SpaceX’s next Grasshopper attempt, its sixth, would take place. Grasshopper, last September, flew to 2.5 meters and in November, it flew to 5.4 meters.
Grasshopper stands 10 stories tall and 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. Grasshopper is part of SpaceX’s effort to develop rapidly reusable rockets, which could transform space exploration by radically reducing its cost, according to a company statement. With Grasshopper, SpaceX engineers are testing the technology that would enable a launched rocket to land intact, rather than burning up upon reentry to Earth’s atmosphere.