SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket Tuesday evening, a long-awaited liftoff after technical delays kept it on the pad last week.
After two delays, including one attempt on Thanksgiving, SpaceX said all technical issues on board the rocket had been resolved.
The previous attempts were called off due to a bad gas generator on one of the rocket's nine engines. SpaceX said the small generator, itself, is a small rocket engine which powers a turbo pump, producing the horsepower for the engine.
The launch was initially rescheduled for Monday, but SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said they needed some extra time to check all the rocket's systems again.
The commercial rocket company is accomplishing a first in their brief history: To launch a communications satellite into orbit. The SES-8 is a 3.5-ton commercial communications satellite aimed at high-growth markets in the Asia-Pacific region.