SpaceX successfully lands rocket's first stage after space launch

SpaceX successfully landed the first stage of its Falcon 9 rocket on a floating platform in the Atlantic Ocean early Friday after launching a Japanese communications satellite into orbit. Shouts of "USA, USA, USA" and applause from the ground control crew greeted the feat, only the second time it has been accomplished by SpaceX, which is headed by Internet entrepreneur Elon Musk. The two-stage rocket lifted off on schedule from Cape Canaveral, Florida at 1:21 am (0521 GMT) with a telecommunications satellite owned by Japanese operator SKY Perfect JSAT.

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