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A28 SCIENCE
Saturday 12 May 2018
SpaceX's upgraded rocket soars with satellite for Bangladesh

By MARCIA DUNN flights apiece. There has
AP Aerospace Writer been a fair amount of
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) maintenance between
— SpaceX lifted Bangla- uses.
desh's first satellite into orbit For this new model, SpaceX
Friday using an upgraded enhanced engine perfor-
rocket designed for dozens mance, strengthened vari-
of repeat flights including ous parts of the rocket and
back-to-back, same-day improved the landing gear
launches. system.
SpaceX chief executive In the most visible change,
Elon Musk said launching the segment between the
the same rocket twice with- first and upper stages went
in 24 hours will be "crazy from white to black with the
hard," but he hopes to pull addition of new thermal in-
off the feat as early as next sulation.
year. Musk wants to ultimately re-
This latest and final version cover the entire rocket, not
of the company's Falcon 9 just the first stage, which
rocket — capable of more This image made available by SpaceX shows the company's Falcon 9 rocket booster after it accounts for 60 percent of
than 10 reflights, possibly landed on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean on Friday, May 11, 2018. the cost. He expects more
even 100 — made its de- customers to start gravitat-
but Friday. It soared from nounced as cheers and costs. we've done it. But it can be ing toward "flight-proven"
NASA's Kennedy Space applause filled SpaceX Mis- "This is a ridiculously hard done." rockets as he calls them.
Center into a hazy after- sion Control in Hawthorne, thing," Musk told report- The Falcon 9 is SpaceX's "Would you rather fly in an
noon sky, carrying a com- California. The booster will ers before Thursday's post- workhorse, regularly haul- aircraft that has never had
munication satellite named be taken apart for analy- ponement. "It has taken us ing satellites into orbit and a test flight before or would
Bangabandhu-1 after the sis before flying again in a ... 16 years of extreme effort supplies to the Internation- you rather fly in an aircraft
founding father of Bangla- few months. Musk's goal and many, many iterations al Space Station. This new that has flown many times
desh. A last-minute abort is to eventually have little and thousands of small but and improved model will successfully?" he said.
halted Thursday's try. if any prep work between important development be used to launch astro- Musk plans to launch about
This newest booster landed launches. changes to get to where nauts for NASA in the com- 30 of these upgraded Fal-
on an ocean platform fol- The whole point of reusabil- we think this is even pos- ing year. con 9s before switching to
lowing liftoff as planned. ity — multiple flights with sible. So far, the first-stage boost- a massive rocket still in de-
"What a great sight!" the swift turnarounds, airplane- Crazy hard. We still need to ers have been recycled velopment known as the
launch commentator an- style — is to shave launch demonstrate it. It's not like once, for a total of two BFR, or Big Falcon Rocket.q

Idaho wildlife officials approve

limited grizzly bear hunt

moved from the Endan- timate for the region was The U.S. Department of the
gered Species List. 718 bears. Interior is locked in a court
Under the plan, the Depart- Wyoming is also planning a battle with conservationists
ment of Fish and Game will limited trophy hunt this fall. and American Indian tribes
hold a random drawing to Wyoming's proposed hunt, over the lifting of protec-
award one Idaho hunter which will be considered tions for a group of grizzlies
a grizzly tag for a hunting on May 23 by the state's in and around Yellowstone
season running from Sept. 1 Game and Fish Commis- National Park.
In this Sept. 25, 2013 photo, a grizzly bear cub rests near a cab-
in a few miles from the north entrance to Yellowstone National to Nov. 15. sion, would allow for 11 Attorney Andrea Santarsi-
Park in Gardiner, Mont. If successful, the hunter bears to be hunted — 10 ere, with the Center for Bio-
won't be allowed to reap- males and one female — logical Diversity, one of the
Associated Press approved a limited hunt- ply for future tags. Baiting between Sept. 15 and Nov. plaintiffs in the lawsuit, said
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The ing season for grizzly bears or hound-hunting will not 15. Idaho bowed to the wishes
Idaho Fish and Game in eastern Idaho just a year be allowed. However, under the pro- of trophy hunters in approv-
Commission on Thursday after the animals were re- Grizzlies in the Yellowstone posal rules, the Wyoming ing a hunt.
National Park region were hunt would be stopped "This is a sad day for the
on the Endangered Spe- when one female bear many state residents who
cies Act list until 2017, when is taken even if no male value our native wildlife
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife bears have been killed. and the critical role it plays
Service removed federal Montana officials have de- in keeping wild lands in bal-
protections. cided not to hold a grizzly ance," Santarsiere said in a
That cleared the way for bear hunt this year. prepared statement.
Idaho, Montana and Wyo- Idaho officials are warn- Santarsiere said her orga-
ming to allow limited hunt- ing would-be hunters that nization oppose any hunt-
ing when the population the grizzly hunt could still ing of grizzly bears, saying it
has more than 600 bears. be canceled because of a would threaten continued
Last year's population es- pending federal lawsuit. recovery of the bears.q