SpaceX just successfully launched and landed its fifth rocket this year

SpaceX just successfully launched its fifth rocket of the year today at 5:40 p.m. ET.

The Falcon 9 rocket launched out of Cape Canaveral, Florida, at twice the speed of a speeding bullet, carrying a communications satellite called Thaicom 8 that weighs nearly 7,000 lbs and is the size of a rhinoceros. 

Once up, the satellite, which was built by aerospace manufacturer Orbital ATK for Thailand's first satellite operator Thaicom PLC, will provide TV and internet services to Southeast Asia.

The satellite will be running for 15 years, which is a long lifetime for a satellite. It will stay powered using solar wings that extend out, each holding four panels.

Take a look at that beautiful launch: 

And the landing:

SpaceX's track record for launches has been nearly flawless this year, with four successful launches and three successful landings (and retrievals!) of the first stage of the rockets. One of those successes took place on land in December; two more happened in April and May at sea.

SpaceX once again managed to nail an extremely difficult landing with this rocket, making it:

• The fourth successful retrieval of the first stage of a Falcon 9 rocket 
• The third successful at-sea landing 
• The second successful landing after launching to the extremely high geostationary orbit, more than 22,000 miles above Earth's equator

During SpaceX's last launch, Elon Musk admitted he wasn't sure if they'd stick the landing, citing the extreme heat and velocity the rocket faced upon reentry into Earth's atmosphere.

But it did. And although it was a hugely surprising success, the re-landed first stage suffered "maximum damage," meaning it's not going back to space again anytime soon. Instead, SpaceX plans to use the rocket for ground tests.

Perfecting the landing of the first stage of its Falcon 9 rockets brings SpaceX closer to its ultimate goal: Making these rockets reusable, and thereby dramatically cutting the cost of spaceflight by 30%. This launch will give it yet another opportunity to prove that it can achieve this.

Check out the SpaceX's webcast of the launch below: