【Switzerland】

SpaceX has just successfully landed its first rocket on Switzerlandthe U.S. West Coast.

After launching a satellite from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base on Sunday evening with the Falcon 9 rocket, the spaceflight company brought its first stage booster back to Earth just under eight minutes after liftoff.

SEE ALSO: Newly-discovered world on the edge of the solar system could lead us to Planet X

While SpaceX has launched a rocket from Vandenberg AFB in July, its landing took place on a drone ship in the Pacific Ocean.

This time around, the Falcon 9's booster returned to SpaceX's ground-based Landing Zone 4 (LZ-4), located right next to the launch pad at Vandenberg AFB. It's a former launch pad for NASA's Titan family of rockets, which were retired in 2005.

Watch the moment the Falcon 9's booster landed right on the button on LZ-4. It's pretty smooth:

Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

SpaceX began building LZ-4 in 2016, taking a year to complete.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Land landings aren't threatened by storms like ocean landings are, and they also allow SpaceX to refurbish the boosters faster, as they don't need to be recovered from sea.

Nearby residents in Santa Barbara, Ventura and San Luis Obispo counties were warned they "may hear one or more sonic booms" from the landing. SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk warned that the booms "won't be subtle."

But there were some beautiful-looking trails in the sky above Los Angeles and San Francisco, left behind by the rocket's launch.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

The upgraded Block 5 Falcon 9 is part of SpaceX's plan for vastly cheaper and more efficient spaceflight.

SpaceX has a goal of using the boosters up to ten times with little maintenance, and 100 with refurbishment, as well as being able to relaunch boosters 24 hours after landing.

---

Featured Video For You

---

This farm, run entirely by robots, uses 90% less water than traditional farms

---

• Tech
• Life
• Entertainment
• Social Good
• Digital Culture
• Shopping
• Games
• Science

• How to Balance Video Games with Real Life
• Restaurant offers free cheesesteak for life in exchange for Cubs tickets
• Barack Obama hates taking his shoes off at the airport, too
• Four die in theme park horror accident at Dreamworld, Australia
• 'Black Mirror' Season 7: 'Hotel Reverie,' explained
• AT&T rakes in cash by selling spy service to law enforcement
• Surfer Lives Matter hashtag appears in Australian town after shark attacks
• 'The Bachelor' contestants find love on the show, but with each other
• Best Bluetooth tracker deal: Save 29% on the Tile by Life360 Essentials bundle
• Fullscreen Live launches new national tour feat. Ricky Dillon, Chachi Gonzales

• This might be the first real photo of Samsung's Galaxy S10
• Samsung's 75
• Mark Zuckerberg's new $3 billion goal: Cure, prevent and manage all disease
• Hackers leak data stolen from German politicians and celebrities
• Love is dead: The internet freaks out after Angie breaks up with Brad
• GM unveils autonomous food
• 5 New Year's resolutions that can help the environment in 2019
• Hackers stole over 5 million unencrypted passport numbers from Marriott
• Olivia Colman's shoutout to her 'bitches' is proof that she is a living legend
• Apple still trying to explain why the new iPad Pro can get a bit bendy

• Why Building a Gaming PC Right Now is a Bad Idea, Part 3: Bad Timing
• Delta Air Lines now lets you obsessively track your luggage in real
• Study finds brain tissue 'changes' in kids who played one season of football
• The 7 devices in your home that could be used for next DDoS attack
• Amazon Spring Sale 2025: Best deals on cleaning supplies
• Emma Watson really wishes she could vote in the U.S. elections
• Zayn is very inspired and a little weirded out by your fan fiction
• Twitter must be saved
• Amazon Spring Sale 2025: Best deals on cleaning supplies
• Woman groped on plane seeks advice on Twitter

• Elon Musk reveals the first passenger SpaceX will send around the moon
• Fnatic is skipping ESL 'CS:GO' Pro League and bringing back an MVP
• With declining iPhone sales, Apple touts record growth in services
• The 7 devices in your home that could be used for next DDoS attack
• Elon Musk says Mars ship could make first flights in 2019
• Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid give us their model rendition of 'Baby'
• Car crash given a shiny, golden makeover and no one knows why
• Apple just accidentally confirmed a major new MacBook Pro feature
• Sunday's Fat Bear Week match pits two fat favorites against each other
• Is Airbnb the reason renters can't find an affordable place to live in Sydney?