14 DAY TRIAL // Elon Musk may have pulled an all-nighter to finish the Hyperloop presentation document, but he's not joking when he says he doesn't have any time for more projects. He's already quite busy running both SpaceX and Tesla Motors.
Case in point is the latest Grasshopper video, which is even more impressive than the last. Grasshopper is SpaceX's most advanced rocket, which can take off and land vertically. It's also the first ever reusable rocket that actually has a chance of going beyond the experimental stage.
Up to now, SpaceX wanted to see just how far they could push the Grasshopper and then have it land safely. In the previous test, which set the record for highest flight, the rocket also used some new stabilization systems.
Those systems are now being put to good use as the very latest Grasshopper test had it do some maneuvering in the air.
"Latest rocket test flight: hard lateral deviation, stabilize & hover, rapid descent back to pad," Musk explained in a tweet.
"On August 13th, the Falcon 9 test rig (code name Grasshopper) completed a divert test, flying to a 250m altitude with a 100m lateral maneuver before returning to the center of the pad," the video description adds.