Overview
- The first-stage booster landed on a floating platform in the Atlantic and can be reused.
- Liftoff from Cape Canaveral succeeded on the third attempt after two weather scrubs.
- The nearly 100-meter-tall rocket carried two probes now on their trajectory toward Mars.
- NASA says Escapade will examine the Sun's influence on Mars to inform protection against hazardous space weather.
- The launch follows NASA's decision to reissue the Artemis lunar contract after SpaceX test setbacks, with crewed goals targeted for the Moon by 2029 and Mars no earlier than the 2030s.