SpaceX made history today by successfully launching and landing a used Falcon 9 rocket for the first time ever. It’s something CEO Elon Musk has talked about since he founded the company 15 years ago. But the company arrived here so fast that it’s almost hard to remember it only started attempting these daring landings just over two years ago. So here’s a GIF recap — click the links for more info on each:
Attempt 1, January 2015:
Attempt 2, April 2015:
Attempt 3, December 2015 — the first successful landing:
Attempt 4, January 2016:
Attempt 5, March 2016 (video signal cut out before failure):
Attempt 6, April 2016 — first successful sea landing:
Attempt 7, May 2016 — second successful sea landing:
Attempt 8, May 2016 — third successful sea landing:
Attempt 9, June 2016:
Attempt 10, July 2016 — second land landing:
Attempt 11, August 2016 — fourth successful sea landing (video feed cut out during landing):
Attempt 12, January 2017 — fifth successful sea landing:
Attempt 13, February 2017 — third successful land landing:
Attempt 14, March 2017 — sixth successful sea landing, and the first time a Falcon 9 has landed twice:
SpaceX spent a few years test-landing smaller scale versions of its rockets, too. “It’s been 15 years to get to this point, it’s taken us a long time,” Musk said after today’s feat. “A lot of difficult steps along the way, but I’m just incredibly proud of SpaceX for being able to achieve this incredible milestone in the history of space.”