Grasshopper, SpaceX’s reusable technology testbed, has flown its first real hop, as seen in a video tweeted by Elon Musk.
The vehicle is essentially a modifed Falcon 9 fuel system and Merlin 1D rocket attached to low-tech struts. The follow-on will be better equipped to handle higher speeds, altitudes and pressures.
SpaceX has been reticent to release much information about Grasshopper, much less the follow-on, but this latest flight marks another leap towards Elon Musk’s stated goal, a vertical-takeoff and vertical-landing rocket.
