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Fri, Mar 24, 2017

Photos Reveal New Equipment On SpaceX Drone Ship

Thought To Be Robot Designed To Secure Recovered Boosters

During a helicopter tour of Florida's Space Coast, self-proclaimed space fan Stephen Marr saw something interesting on the deck of SpaceX's drone recovery ship. So he started shooting photos with a telephoto lens.

The images showed a new piece of equipment that is thought to be a robot that would interact with and secure Falcon 9 boosters after they land on the vessel.

Florida Today reports that the device, which was nicknamed "Optimus Prime" by Reddit's SpaceX community, would likely help further reduce the cost of reusing boosters by the company.

SpaceX senior director of launch operations Ricky Lim confirmed to Florida Today that the device, which is still being tested, is a "future capability" that will be introduced when it passes its testing regimen. "I don't think it's very far away," Lim said, but he would not elaborate on its specific use.

(Image from Facebook)

FMI: www.spacex.com

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