falcon heavy

SpaceX successfully launches Falcon Heavy for the fourth time ever • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on November 1, 2022Posted in falcon heavy, Space, SpaceXNo Comments

SpaceX has launched its Falcon Heavy rocket on a mission for the U.S. Space Force. This is the fourth ever launch of the company’s heavy payload launch vehicle, which first flew in 2018. Today’s launch also marks SpaceX’s 50th in 2022. The payload for today’s launch includes two U.S. space force satellites, including one used for “various prototype missions” in geosynchronous orbit, and another whose nature and purpose is classified for national defence purposes. While SpaceX uses Falcon Heavy a lot less frequently than its Falcon 9 rocket (Heavy’s last launch was in 2019), it has a solid track record across its four flights. The Falcon Heavy uses three boosters for added thrust and lift capacity vs. Falcon 9’s single core. The mission also included a successful landing of both the side boosters on land, marking the 150th and 151st successful landing of SpaceX’s orbital rockets. The center core was not recovered, since it was set in expendable mode to use the max amount of fuel to get the payload to its target orbit. Image Credits: SpaceX

Watch SpaceX launch a Falcon Heavy for the first time in three years • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 31, 2022Posted in falcon heavy, Space, SpaceX, US Space forceNo Comments

Thousands are gathering on Florida’s Space Coast to watch SpaceX launch the massive Falcon Heavy rocket for the first time since 2019. SpaceX will attempt to directly inject two U.S. Space Force spacecraft to geosynchronous orbit. The payload includes TETRA-1, a microsatellite developed by Boeing subsidiary Millennium Space Systems, which the company describes as a spacecraft created for “various prototype missions” in an around GEO. The other spacecraft is classified. While the Space Force originally intended to launch the USSF-44 mission in late 2020, it was repeatedly delayed due to payload readiness issues. Falcon Heavy is the most powerful rocket currently in operation, and it’s only flown three times, the last of which took place in June 2019. Its maiden launch, which carried a Tesla Roadster (and dummy driver) to orbit, is a particularly notable chapter in SpaceX history. The rocket is made up of a trio of Falcon 9 boosters, the very same ones that now launch at least once a week. The whopping 27 Merlin engines together produce around 5 million pounds of thrust. A Falcon 9 second stage and payload fairing is attached to the central booster. This will be the first launch for all three boosters as well as the upper stage and fairing. SpaceX shared a photo last week of the three first stages in the hangar at Kennedy Space Center. Image credits: SpaceX The central booster will be expended, while the two side boosters will land at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The launch is scheduled for no earlier than 9:44 AM EST.

NASA’s Psyche mission to a metal-rich asteroid is back on the books for October 2023 • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 28, 2022Posted in falcon heavy, NASA, psyche, Space, SpaceXNo Comments

NASA said Friday that its Psyche mission (named after the asteroid the mission is targeting) has been rescheduled to October next year. The news comes just a few months after the agency announced that it would definitively miss its planned 2022 launch attempt. The delayed schedule is due to late delivery of key components of the spacecraft, including the flight software and testing equipment. The launch window for this year concluded on October 11. NASA conducted an internal review to determine whether the mission could launch next year, in addition to a separate independent review commissioned by the agency to examine the failures that led to missing the launch window. It appears that the review determined that next year’s launch is a go. While the launch window has changed, NASA said the flight profile will be similar: The spacecraft will use Martian gravity in 2026 to propel the spacecraft toward the asteroid Psyche. If the mission does move forward next year, the spacecraft is targeted to arrive at the asteroid in August 2029. The mission, which is being led by Arizona State University, will explore the metal asteroid dubbed “Psyche” located between Mars and Jupiter. It was chosen for exploration because scientists believe it is the nickel-iron core of an earlier planet, making it a rich target for understanding how our own planet came to exist. Folks with asteroid mining ambitions, of course, undoubtedly also have their interest piqued. Total mission costs, including launch, are $985 million; of that, $717 million had been spent as of June. Two additional projects were scheduled to launch with Psyche: a NASA mission called Janus, to explore a twin binary asteroid system, and a technology demonstration of high-data-rate laser communication data. The latter has already been integrated with the Psyche spacecraft and will launch with it, but NASA is still exploring options for Janus. In February 2020, NASA announced it had awarded the launch contract to SpaceX for a value of $117 million. The agency booked a ride on a Falcon Heavy, the most powerful rocket currently in operation and which has only flown three times in its history. (The fourth could take place as early as next week.)