A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has successfully launched into space an Inmarsat communications satellite from Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

The satellite launched carried the heaviest haul ever by a Falcon 9 rocket to date, weighing more than six tons.

The satellite, by London-based Inmarsat, which is the largest UK space company, is part of the company's Global Xpress communications satellites that are to provide high speed internet connections globally, according to SpaceX.