"We will have a good time no matter what happens," Musk said. If successful, the Falcon Heavy will pave the way for SpaceX transport beyond a close Earth orbit-to the moon and onward to Mars. The Falcon Heavy will lift off from the same launch pad used by most of the Apollo moon missions, and it will have the most lift capacity of any U.S. "If something goes wrong, hopefully it goes wrong far into the mission, so we at least learn as much as possible along the way … I would consider it a win if it just clears the pad and doesn't blow the pad to smithereens." Musk said that rebuilding the pad could take 8 to 12 months, which would be the limiting factor for when they could try another launch if this one went poorly SpaceX can build another Falcon Heavy to test in 3 or 4 months. "It'd be a real huge downer if it blows up," Musk said during the teleconference. After Musk made that comment, the Falcon Heavy underwent a successful engine test-fire, in which all the first-stage engines ignited for about 10 seconds on the launch pad. The vehicle's 27 first-stage engines will all need to light at the right time, for instance, and the central first-stage will undergo a lot of stress during the launch. 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. ET on July 10 with news of successful launch and rocket landing.CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.-SpaceX's giant new rocket, the Falcon Heavy, is set for its risky first test launch today (Feb. ET on July 9 with the new launch time of 11:58 p.m. The original launch target was July 9 at 4:36 a.m. ET on July 9 with the new launch time of 8:36 p.m. And both of its stages will be capable of flying multiple times in a single day, SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk has said.Įditor's note: This story was updated at 1 a.m. The giant vehicle, the most powerful rocket ever built, is designed to be fully reusable. Starship will take reflight to another level, if all goes according to plan. The booster is not a reuse outlier another Falcon 9 first stage has 15 flights under its belt, and a few others have launched 14 times. Among its 15 previous flights are Demo-2, SpaceX's first-ever crewed mission, which sent two NASA astronauts to the International Space Station in 2020. The Falcon 9 first stage that flew Sunday night last launched in December 2022. SpaceX Starlink satellites had to make 25,000 collision-avoidance maneuvers in just 6 months - and it will only get worse 8 ways that SpaceX has transformed spaceflight SpaceX rocket launches on record-setting 15th mission, lands on ship at sea (video)
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