SpaceEx

SpaceX is planning to make another attempt to land its Falcon 9 rocket on a drone ship in the Pacific Ocean during the proposed launch of Nasa’s Jason 3 mission on 17 January.

After the company’s success in landing a Falcon 9 booster in December, it will be SpaceX’s third try to execute a sea-based landing for its reusable flagship rocket.

SpaceX will use a different Falcon 9 rocket, which is not similar to the one used in the last mission.

During the launch, which is part of the Jason 3 mission, Falcon 9 will carry an ocean-monitoring satellite from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

"SpaceX will try to land the Falcon 9 first stage on a drone ship during the Jason-3 launch from Vandenberg AFB on January 17."

The mission is part of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s current climate change research programme. The Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES) and European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) are also involved in the mission.

Space technology journalist Charles Lurio said in a tweet: "SpaceX will try to land the Falcon 9 first stage on a drone ship during the Jason-3 launch from Vandenberg AFB on January 17."

SpaceX also confirmed the news, reported NBC News.

Ahead of the scheduled mission, SpaceX is currently performing activities in preparation for its Falcon 9 launch at the company’s California-based West Coast launch facility.

In the first stage, the rocket will get separated two minutes after liftoff. It will then turn around and perform other tasks before making a final move to land itself back on a floating landing pad in the Pacific Ocean.

SpaceX previously tried ocean landings twice without any success.

Image: Falcon 9’s first stage landing during December’s mission. Photo: courtesy of SpaceX.