SpaceX has flown its third “flight proven” rocket

Enlarge / The Falcon 9 first stage being used Wednesday first flew in February, 2017, on the CRS-10 space station supply mission. (credit: SpaceX)

7:45pm Wednesday update: Under brilliant, blue skies a used Falcon 9 rocket launched Wednesday, delivered its payload into orbit, and then the first stage returned to make a landing on a droneship in the Atlantic Ocean. About 30 minutes later, the upper stage of the rocket deployed the EchoStar 105/SES-11 satellite into geostationary orbit. The third flight of a used Falcon 9 booster was apparently flawless.

Original post: Fresh off a successful launch on Monday from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base, SpaceX will go for a second mission in three days on Wednesday from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. With a two-hour launch window that opens at 6:53pm ET, SpaceX will attempt to launch the EchoStar 105/SES-11 communications satellite to geostationary transfer orbit. Weather conditions in Florida look fine this evening

The highlight of Wednesday's mission is the company's re-use of a previously flown first stage booster. This rocket first flew in February, when it launched a cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station and subsequently returned to a landing zone along the Florida coast.

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