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    You’ve never seen a SpaceX rocket fall to Earth quite like this before

    You’ve never seen a SpaceX rocket fall to Earth quite like this before

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    New viewing angles for a national security mission

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    This morning, SpaceX pulled off yet another successful Falcon 9 rocket landing after launching a spy satellite into space for the National Reconnaissance Office. Since it was a national security launch, we weren’t treated to very many shots of the rocket in space. But in lieu of that footage, we did get to see multiple angles of the Falcon 9 rocket on its descent back to Earth — including one long shot we’ve never quite seen before.

    During the online webcast, there was a ground-based camera (or so it seemed) trained on the Falcon 9 nearly the whole time the rocket fell back from space. This meant we also got a super clear shot of the Falcon 9 first stage — the core of the rocket that contains the main engines — when it separated from the vehicle’s second stage, the part of the rocket carrying the secret satellite.

    GIF: SpaceX

    The rest of the live stream showed a nearly constant view of the first stage during its fall, giving us views of the rocket’s various engine burns that are used to slow and control the vehicle during the descent. And as usual, a camera mounted on the first stage itself gave viewers a first-person look at what it’s like to be a rocket returning from space. It was a SpaceX webcast like never before, and hopefully these new camera angles will be incorporated in both commercial and military launches the company does moving forward.