The space company SpaceX successfully launched its Falcon Heavy rocket and brought it back to Earth for the fourth time. The rocket was carrying a secret payload from the United States Space Force, the space unit of the US military.
It was the first time in three years that the Falcon Heavy rocket was launched. The last time the missile was used was in 2019.
As with other SpaceX rockets, parts of the Falcon Heavy rocket can be reused. After the rocket released its secret payload, the two outer rocket stages landed back on Earth. It was the 150th and 151st time that rocket stages have successfully landed for SpaceX.
The central stage of the Falcon Heavy rocket was lost during launch. It was according to plan. In this way, more fuel was available to bring the heavy payload into the correct orbit.
