Space Exploration Technologies, also known as SpaceX is planning on creating a new landing pad in Florida. The U.S. Air Forced said to develop landing pads for its rockets which are called Falcons. As many know, there is also an Air Force Station in Cape Canaveral; the new SpaceX landing pad is going to similar to this.

A draft assessment by SpaceX demonstrated that they are planning to build a primary concrete square landing pad which will measure 200 by 200 feet and four round pads measuring 150 feet in diameter.

“The contingency pads would only be utilized in order to enable the safe landing of a single vehicle should last-second navigation and landing diversion be required. There are no plans to utilize the contingency pads in order to enable landing multiple stages at once,” the assessment said.

“This is a classic combination of a highly successful launch past morphing into an equally promising future,” Brig. Gen. Nina Armagno, commander of the Air Force’s 45th Space Wing, said in a statement.

SpaceX isn’t only in Florida, it also has a launch pad at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, and recently last month signed a similar deal to take over a second site for a Falcon landing pad.

In an effort to reduce launch cost, SpaceX has been developing technology which would help them to re-use rockets. With this leftover money saved, it can be used on better technology and better things to help advance the rockets or improve the landing pads. In addition to this, they have designed the first stage of its Falcon 9 rocket to be able to fly back to the launch site only by using leftover propellant. The tests that were taken were successful, being tested in low-altitudes.

They have signed a five-year lease for Cape Canaveral’s Launch Complex 13. This was used to launch Atlas rockets and missiles between 1956 and 1978. It will now serve as a landing pad for Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy booster cores launched from Florida.

SpaceX has launched the Falcon 9 rocket one time from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California since 2010. They have launched it 13 times from Cape Canaveral’s Space Launch Complex-40.

Along with the new landing pads, SpaceX also plans on building a steel stand to secure the stage during “post-landings operations”.

FSA Questions

1. In the article, how does the author organize the paragraphs?

2. Select one sentence that best summarizes the work.

3. The author seems to offer what main idea?

4. What is the connotation of the word diversion?

5. In the piece, the word promising helps explain what?