SpaceX is back with a bang with successful launch of Falcon 9 rocket

Elon Musk had a sigh of relief when SpaceX managed to successfully launch its first rocket after the September explosion that cost the company $62 million. The 70-meter Falcon 9 rocket launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base at 9:54 am PST to deliver 10 satellites into orbit for Iridium Communications Inc on Saturday.

The launch is the first in a seven-flight contract worth $468.1 million with Iridium, said Diane Hockenberry, director of public relations and communications at Iridium.

Marking SpaceX's seventh successful landing, the company also managed to successfully land the first stage rocket booster on a floating platform known as a drone ship, named ‘Just Read the Instructions’.

Liftoff pic.twitter.com/pcVJOvFHY2

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 15, 2017

Mission looks good. Started deploying the 10 Iridium satellites. Rocket is stable on the droneship.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 14, 2017

With the latest launch, SpaceX is back on track. Since the explosion, the company had kept its re-launch plans under cover.

The company also revealed the cause of the explosion. An investigation conducted by SpaceX concluded that the explosion was likely caused by a failure of a pressurised second-stage tank. "...a canister of helium burst inside the rocket’s second-stage liquid oxygen tank, triggering the explosion," says the report.

The explosion damaged a $62 million SpaceX booster and a $200 million Israeli communications satellite. Though the explosion affected partner’s trust, the company already has more than 70 planned missions in 2017, worth more than $10 billion.

SpaceX aims to launch 27 rockets in 2017, compared to 8 rockets launched in 2016. As per TechCrunch, the company is also planning to launch 4,000+ satellite to cover the earth with "blanket of Internet coverage." The company plans to utilise the revenue from this project to fund its 'Mars Mission'.

The company is also aiming to launch a heavy-lift booster to repair the Florida launch pad, which was damaged in the September explosion.