A rocket designed by Elon Musk’s company SpaceX sent a U.S. spy satellite into space Sunday, the first time the National Reconnaissance Office reused a rocket booster that had previously been used on another mission.
The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) is the U.S. government agency in charge of designing, building, launching and maintaining America’s intelligence satellites.
The two-stage Falcon 9 rocket launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California and successfully returned after delivering the satellite to orbit, NRO officials said in a statement. The rocket’s first stage made a vertical touchdown back at the base barely eight minutes after the launch.
The launch mission — designated as NROL-85 — is an example of how the agency is saving taxpayer money while still carrying out its mission, NRO officials said.
“It reduces our costs which reflects our commitment to using taxpayer dollars responsibly,” said Col. Chad Davis, NRO’s director of the Office of Space Launch. “We are continuing to push the boundaries of what’s possible while delivering greater value.”
NROL-85 is NRO’s fourth launch from a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The satellite will provide “a wide range of timely intelligence information to national decision-makers, warfighters, and intelligence analysts,” NRO officials said in a statement.