Watch Elon Musk and SpaceX Team Freak Out Over Historic Rocket Launch The excitement is pretty infectious.

By Nina Zipkin

Elon Musk is often referred to as the real-life Iron Man. He's known for being cerebral and collected.

Last year, SpaceX launched into orbit and safely landed its reusable Falcon 9 rocket for the first time. It wasn't just an achievement for the company -- it had never been done before in the history of space travel.

If you were in the control room for such an event, you would feel a little nervous, right? It turns out Musk felt very much the same.

Related: Elon Musk Reveals His Next Idea as 'The Boring Company'

National Geographic got a front row seat to the launch, and just released a video of Musk and his team as they watched their years of work come to fruition.

Not content to watch from inside, Musk and his colleagues run out of the control room to watch the different phases of the launch, standing on the side of the road at Cape Canaveral, and staring up into the sky like stargazing kids.

Reflecting on the accomplishment, Musk said, "the thing that gets me fired up is that creating a self-sustaining civilization on Mars would be the greatest adventure ever in human history."

Nina Zipkin

Entrepreneur Staff

Staff Writer. Covers leadership, media, technology and culture.

Nina Zipkin is a staff writer at Entrepreneur.com. She frequently covers leadership, media, tech, startups, culture and workplace trends.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Starting a Business

These Yale Students Raised $3 Million in 14 Days to Build Their 'Anti-Facebook' Startup: 'I Can See My Childhood Self Looking Up to Me.'

Two 21-year-old Yale juniors are changing digital networking with Series, an AI-powered platform backed by $3 million in venture capital.

Business News

This Is How Much an iPhone Would Cost If It Were Made in the U.S., According to Analysts

It would take Apple three years to move 10% of its supply chain to the U.S.

Starting a Business

Stop Searching for Your Purpose — It's Delaying Your Success. Here's What to Focus on Instead.

Many entrepreneurs wait to "find" their purpose before acting — but purpose isn't found; it's built.

Business Ideas

70 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2025

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2025.

Growing a Business

How I Replaced a $2,000-a-Month SEO Agency and Built My Own Growth System as a Solo Founder

15 proven tactics I used to grow my startup's visibility and backlinks — without writing a single cold email.

Business News

These 3 Professions Are Most Likely to Vanish in the Next 20 Years Due to AI, According to a New Report

More than 1,000 AI experts think these are the jobs that AI will soon replace.