{"id":18650,"date":"2018-02-06T19:43:35","date_gmt":"2018-02-06T11:43:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/spacex-launches-its-falcon-heavy-rocket-for-first-time-putting-a-sports-car-and-starman-in-space\/"},"modified":"2018-02-06T19:43:35","modified_gmt":"2018-02-06T11:43:35","slug":"spacex-launches-its-falcon-heavy-rocket-for-first-time-putting-a-sports-car-and-starman-in-space","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/spacex-launches-its-falcon-heavy-rocket-for-first-time-putting-a-sports-car-and-starman-in-space\/","title":{"rendered":"SpaceX launches its Falcon Heavy rocket for first time, putting a sports car (and Starman) in space"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_395593\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-395593\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full-width wp-image-395593\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/180206-launch-630x420.jpg\" alt=\"Falcon Heavy launch\" width=\"630\" height=\"420\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/180206-launch-630x420.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/180206-launch-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/180206-launch-1260x840.jpg 1260w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/180206-launch.jpg 1995w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" id=\"caption-attachment-395593\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">SpaceX\u2019s Falcon Heavy rocket lifts off from its launch pad at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. (GeekWire Photo \/ Kevin Lisota)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.&nbsp;\u2014 SpaceX\u2019s triple-barreled Falcon Heavy rocket rose into space today for the first time on a pillar of flame and clouds of exhaust, blending the serious and silly sides of spaceflight. And to top it all off, two of those three rocket barrels landed back on Earth intact after the launch.<\/p>\n<p>More than 2 million people watched SpaceX\u2019s live video stream, which showed the launch and the landings as well as hundreds of employees cheering at the company\u2019s headquarters in California.<\/p>\n<p>Liftoff from the historic Launch Complex 39A at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where Apollo moon rockets and space shuttles once began their trips into space, came at 3:45 p.m. ET (12:45 p.m. PT). The launch occurred more than two hours later than originally planned, due to upper-level winds that had to die down before the go-ahead was given.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_395911\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-395911\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full-width wp-image-395911\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/20180206_Falcon_Heavy_Launch_Pad_35-630x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"630\" height=\"768\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/20180206_Falcon_Heavy_Launch_Pad_35-630x768.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/20180206_Falcon_Heavy_Launch_Pad_35-768x936.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/20180206_Falcon_Heavy_Launch_Pad_35-1034x1260.jpg 1034w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/20180206_Falcon_Heavy_Launch_Pad_35.jpg 1680w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" id=\"caption-attachment-395911\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Falcon Heavy clears the tower. (GeekWire Photo\/Kevin Lisota)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The test launch marked a serious step forward for SpaceX, which can now lay claim to having the world\u2019s most powerful operational rocket. But its payload was as silly as it gets: a red Tesla Roadster sports car, owned by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk (who also happens to be Tesla\u2019s CEO).<\/p>\n<p>The Roadster, with a spacesuit-clad \u201cStarman\u201d mannequin in the front seat, was packed inside the Falcon Heavy\u2019s nose cone because Musk didn\u2019t want to risk putting a valuable spacecraft on a test flight that could have gone horribly awry.<\/p>\n<p>David Bowie\u2019s \u201cLife on Mars\u201d provided the soundtrack as the car and Starman were exposed to the vacuum of space. \u201cDON\u2019T PANIC,\u201d the classic advice from humorist Douglas Adams\u2019 \u201cHitchhiker\u2019s Guide to the Galaxy,\u201d was displayed on the Roadster\u2019s dash screen.<\/p>\n<p>The car is heading for a deep-space orbit looping out beyond the orbit of Mars. \u201cWe estimate it\u2019ll be in that orbit for several hundred million years, maybe in excess of a billion years,\u201d Musk said.<\/p>\n<p><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-0\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowtransparency=\"true\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" class=\"\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden; width: 0px; height: 0px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=b0yle&amp;dnt=true&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-0&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=961083704230674438&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.geekwire.com%2F2018%2Fspacex-launches-falcon-heavy-roadster%2F&amp;sessionId=10da71c12a3ba6ad935d8afa8985593d5d53b635&amp;siteScreenName=geekwire&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&amp;width=550px\" data-tweet-id=\"961083704230674438\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\" data-twitter-extracted-i1782801541779899697=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Third burn successful. Exceeded Mars orbit and kept going to the Asteroid Belt. pic.twitter.com\/bKhRN73WHF<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 7, 2018<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>At least two other items of note were placed on board as payloads: a commemorative plaque that bore the signatures of 6,000 SpaceX employees, and a \u201cdata crystal\u201d containing a digitized library that includes Isaac Asimov\u2019s Foundation Trilogy.<\/p>\n<p>This first Falcon Heavy was the result of years of development work, and combines three first-stage rocket cores for SpaceX\u2019s workhorse Falcon 9 rocket. Two of the tall, cylindrical cores were used in previous launches and refurbished for today\u2019s test. The center core was previously unflown.<\/p>\n<p>The three first-stage cores bristled with 27 of SpaceX\u2019s Merlin rocket engines, providing 5 million pounds of thrust at liftoff. They powered the world\u2019s most energetic rocket launch since 2011, when Atlantis blasted off on the space shuttle fleet\u2019s last mission with nearly 7 million pounds of thrust.<\/p>\n<p>Minutes after liftoff, all three of the Falcon Heavy\u2019s cores separated and headed back to Earth for recovery&nbsp;\u2014 two by land and one by sea. The two side cores landed successfully at SpaceX\u2019s Landing Zone 1 and Landing Zone 2, not far from the launch site, heralding their arrival with a pair of sonic booms.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_395594\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-395594\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full-width wp-image-395594\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/180206-landing-630x484.jpg\" alt=\"Rocket landings\" width=\"630\" height=\"484\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/180206-landing-630x484.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/180206-landing-768x590.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/180206-landing-1260x968.jpg 1260w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/180206-landing.jpg 1790w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" id=\"caption-attachment-395594\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Two of the Falcon Heavy\u2019s three rocket cores descend to SpaceX\u2019s landing zones on the Florida coast after stage separation. (GeekWire Photo \/ Kevin Lisota)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>A drone ship named \u201cOf Course I Still Love You\u201d was on hand in the Atlantic to serve as a floating landing pad for the center core. Webcam videos showed the rocket core making a blazing descent, but it missed landing on the ship.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe information I received is that we hit the water at about 300 miles an hour \u2026 and about 100 meters away from the ship,\u201d Musk said during a post-launch news conference. \u201cWhich was enough to take out two thrusters [on the drone ship] and shower the deck with shrapnel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Musk said the center core wasn\u2019t able to summon enough power for a controlled landing because it ran out of the triethylborane fuel needed to restart its engines.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, the Falcon Heavy\u2019s upper stage executed two firings of its single Merlin engine, putting it on course to coast for five hours through the intense radiation of Earth\u2019s Van Allen belts. At the end of that perilous phase of the flight, it fired its engine for a third time to send the Roadster and its dummy driver to deep space at a speed of nearly 25,000 mph (11 km\/sec).<\/p>\n<p>Eventually, SpaceX plans to use the Falcon Heavy to put large satellites, or combinations of satellites, into Earth orbits ranging as high as 22,000 miles in altitude. It could also take on missions to the moon or Mars \u2014 although Musk says that an even more powerful launch vehicle currently under development, nicknamed the BFR or \u201cBig Falcon Rocket,\u201d would probably be more suitable for interplanetary trips once it\u2019s ready to go.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s the archived stream from the test launch:<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Falcon Heavy Test Flight\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/wbSwFU6tY1c?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\" data-ratio=\"0.5625\" data-width=\"800\" data-height=\"450\" style=\"display: block; margin: 0px; width: 800px; height: 450px;\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><em>This report was most recently updated at 9:34 p.m. PT Feb. 6.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SpaceX\u2019s Falcon Heavy rocket lifts off from its launch pad at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. (GeekWire Photo \/ Kevin Lisota) CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.&nbsp;\u2014 SpaceX\u2019s triple-barreled Falcon Heavy rocket rose into space today for the first time on a pillar of flame and clouds of exhaust, blending the serious and silly sides of spaceflight. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[678,316],"class_list":["post-18650","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-falcon-heavy","tag-spacex"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18650"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18650"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18650\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18650"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18650"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18650"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}