![]() ![]() Musk has emphasized that this is a high-risk launch, setting expectations low for a successful maiden flight. (Musk is also CEO of the electric car company Tesla.) The car is set to end up in an orbit around the sun that's far enough out to reach Mars, had the mission launched at the right time, and Musk said it will carry cameras that should provide "some epic views," if all goes well. For this launch, though, the Falcon Heavy will have a smaller, stranger payload: Musk's car, a red Tesla Roadster. The rocket stands 230 feet (70 meters) tall and will be the world's most powerful operational rocket, able to lift payloads of up to 119,000 lbs. I feel quite giddy and happy, actually-I'm really hopeful for this flight going as planned." "What I find strange about this flight is that normally I feel super stressed out the day before this time I don't," SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said in a news teleconference yesterday (Feb. Two will set down on land, while the center stage, which will travel further, will land on a floating barge. The Falcon Heavy is an extreme version of this setup, built to lift more and go further: What is essentially three Falcon 9 first stages boost the rocket into space, and SpaceX will attempt to land all three of them. The rocket's first stages often land to be reused in future launches. SpaceX's current Falcon 9 rocket launches cargo to the International Space Station and lofts satellites into orbit. Weather conditions are currently at 80 percent "go" for today, and 70 percent for a backup launch time tomorrow, according to the 45th Space Wing's Weather Squadron, which monitors weather for air and space operations at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and Kennedy Space Center. You can watch the launch live here on, courtesy of SpaceX, beginning at 1:10 p.m. The launch window stretches from 1:30 to 4 p.m. ![]() 6) from the historic Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.-SpaceX's giant new rocket, the Falcon Heavy, is set for its risky first test launch today (Feb. SpaceX, which already blew past its then record 31 launches it had in 2021 in July, is on pace to hit as many as 60 launches before the end of 2022.įollow Orlando Sentinel space coverage at /goforlaunchsentinel. The growing constellation is on target to reach its 4,408 target with about 20-25 more launches depending on how many are actively in orbit, although it’s looking for Federal Communications Commission approval to grow to about 30,000 with future launches on board its in-the-works Starship rocket. ![]() 3 and the civilian Polaris Dawn mission on tap for December commanded by billionaire Jared Isaccman who led and funded the Inspiration4 flight last year.įor SpaceX, which also uses Vandenberg Space Force Station in California, tonight’s launch will be the 42nd Falcon 9 launch for the year.įor Starlink, it will be the 63rd flight including 28 just this year since the first operational deployment in 2019, putting more than 3,300 satellites into orbit, according to statistics tracked by astronomer Jonathan McDowell. Blue Origin may join the fray with its New Glenn rocket from yet another CCSFS launch pad in 2023.Īlso on tap before the end of the year are two crewed missions from KSC on board SpaceX Crew Dragons - the Crew-5 launch to send astronauts to the International Space Station set to lift off as early as Oct. If both rockets lift off, then the Space Coast will have used six launch pads - both at KSC and four at CCSFS. Before the end of the year, the Space Coast could see two other new rockets to launch with the first liftoff ever from Relativity Space’s 3-D printed Terran I rocket as well as the massive NASA Space Launch System rocket sending the Orion spacecraft to the moon. The two Space Coast launch sites saw 37 launches in 2021, and that was equaled at the end of August. Another milestone has been checked thanks to your hard work!” Thank you to the Airmen and Guardians of SLD 45. “We will continue to lead the way for assured access to space for the nation and the warfighter. “‘Drive to 48’ is now in the rearview mirror, as we look ahead to even greater things and significantly more launches from the Space Coast,” he said. Purdy noted Saturday’s launch was the 50th within 12 months dating back to September 2021.
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