The Space-X launch of supplies to the space station will have some extra excitement. After the separation from the first stage the first stage will attempt to land on a platform in the ocean. This will be a first for anybody. Space-X has been testing vertical landing technologies for a while now, but they have been tested using rockets that go up and then come back down on land. This will be a huge step, first to land the first stage of a working rocket, instead of a specially built test vehicle and then be able to land it at sea. Elon Musk isn't sure whether it will work, but just trying is a big step. More information is at at AmericaSpace

Bill Gill

Update: There was a glitch in the launch. They will try again Friday.

Bill Gill

Update 2: Now the launch is schedules for Saturday.

Bill Gill

Bad luck. The launch was a success. But the first stage had a hard landing and was destroyed. So the landing was a failure. But at least it made it back to the landing platform. They plan to try again next month.

Story at Phys.Org

Bill Gill

It's never a failure if you learn from your mistakes. I predict they will perfect the landing on the platform shortly. Then we will see some space transport going. Onward and upward.

A Space ship! Cool!

Well, they made a second try today. The launch went fine, but they couldn't land the ship on the platform at sea. The seas were too rough and one of the engines on the platform failed. So they had to call off the landing. Maybe they can make it the next time.
It would be great if they can.

Bill Gill

I suppose this is all to make the 1st stage rockets reusable
and the next thing will be to have a human pilot and flight crew to land the the transformed UAV 1st stage rocket on a land based airstrip with its extendable glider wings complete with built in flight control surfaces ... saving a few million or billion dollars each trip.

That's the basic idea. They could save a lot of money if they could reuse the launch vehicles.

Of course for me the glory of it is that they are finally doing it the right way. Space ships are supposed to land by balancing down on their jets. That's the way they have been doing it for as long as I have been reading science fiction.

Bill Gill

Duhh that's because the Enterprise crew has only been allowed
to help in certain areas due to their mission prime directive.