Space X Capsule Splashes Down Successfully in Pacific Ocean

A private rocket that blasted off from Cape Canaveral Wednesday morning successfully completed its two-orbit mission around Earth and splashed down in the Pacific Ocean three hours later.

The unmanned Falcon 9 rocket, built by Space Exploration Technologies Corp., deployed a capsule that made a soft landing 500 miles west of the California-Mexico border just after 2 p.m. ET, according to USA Today.

Orbiting at 186 miles above Earth, the Space X craft's successful test marks another step toward its eventual goal of supplying the International Space Station.

Space X, headed by Pay Pal founder Elon Musk, is among the commercial ventures vying to work with NASA in privatizing future space missions.