HOUSTON – The launch of a Space-X rocket scheduled for Monday is off until at least Friday.
Workers detected a helium leak before launch Monday afternoon. Once the supply ship heads for the International Space Station, a discarded stage of the rocket will fall back towards the ocean.
Workers will try to control its descent. They hope to be able to safely land the rocket back on solid ground. It would, eventually, use legs mounted to the back of the rocket.
Testing for part of this flight started in McGregor, Texas, west of Waco. In video released by Space-X, the rocket took off as other rockets. After hitting its top elevation, the rocket slowed and made a controlled descent back to earth.
After lots of testing, the rocket could not only carry cargo to the International Space Station, but also to return experiments and equipment back to the ground. For now, it's just a test.
"It's an important step in the future of commercial space," said Bob Mitchell, president of the Bay Area Economic Development.
He says commercial space travel could help Texas.
"What this means for TX is big because we are continuing to work with Space-X on a package to launch its Falcon 9 rocket down in south Texas," said Mitchell.