SpaceX on Tuesday launched a two-stage Falcon 9 rocket carrying an uncrewed cargo spacecraft called Dragon on a flight from Cape Canaveral, Florida, to the International Space Station.
The private space exploration company also will try to guide the bottom stage of the rocket, after it separates, into an upright position on a floating platform in the Atlantic Ocean.
SpaceX tried to land a Falcon 9 on the drone ship in January, but the rocket hit at an angle and exploded.
What about the rest of the rocket and the Dragon? The smaller, top part of the rocket will carry the Dragon into orbit and then break away from the cargo ship and burn up in Earth’s atmosphere.
The Dragon will dock with the space station a couple of days after launch to deliver more than 4,300 pounds (1,950 kilograms) of supplies, including research equipment and ISSpresso, an espresso maker that astronauts can use to make coffee and tea.