SpaceX Attempts Falcon 9 Rocket Recycling Test: Live Updates
Elon Musk's team will attempt to land rocket booster on a barge.
— -- It's a big day for Elon Musk and his SpaceX team.
Dragon, the space capsule that ferries supplies to the International Space Station, is set to leave its perch in low Earth orbit at 2:09 p.m. ET today and come splashing down into the Pacific Ocean nearly six hours later.
SpaceX will also try again with its historic rocket recycling test when it attempts to land a rocket booster on a barge -- a feat that founder Elon Musk has said would make space travel more affordable to the masses.
The private space company is contracted by NASA to launch the Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) into space on its Falcon 9 rocket at 6:05 p.m. ET from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
If all goes according to plan, shortly after liftoff, the rocket is set to detach from the payload and begin a controlled descent to Earth, with the goal of executing a pinpoint landing on a barge off the coast of Florida.
It will be the second rocket recycling attempt for SpaceX, coming one month after an attempt ended in a spectacular fireball, with the booster making a hard landing on the barge.
ABC News will have the latest updates on both SpaceX missions. If you're following on a mobile device, click here.
