Reused rocket fuels space-age ambition

Craft's recovery paving way for cheaper travel, says company

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida - A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket recovered at sea from its maiden flight last year blasted off again from Florida on Thursday in the first successful launch of a recycled orbital-class booster, then capped the feat with another return landing on an ocean platform.

The unprecedented twin achievements of relaunching a used rocket and salvaging the vehicle yet again were hailed by billionaire SpaceX founder Elon Musk as a revolutionary step in his quest to slash costs and shorten intervals between space trips.