SpaceX just released another awesome animated video before the upcoming Falcon Heavy launch for the first time tomorrow.
Falcon Heavy will be the most powerful rocket in the history by factor of 2! It can lift 64 tons into orbit. Basicly it can lift a Boeing 737 loaded with passengers, crew, luggage and fuel into orbit :)
Now that's some heavy stuff.
Falcon Heavy has three Falcon 9 first stages with nine-engine each, total of 27 Merlin engines. It is equal to 18 747 aircraft thrust at liftoff.
Primary Mission: Get Hype
Demonstration launch for a new rocket. There are no paying customers for this unproven rocket yet. So this mission is all about proving/making a point that this rocket can deliver!
This will be the first time that all the 27 Merlin engines firing up at the same time. SpaceX is hoping (we all are) that this engine ignitions won't blow the rocket apart :)
After first ignition and liftoff, Falcon Heavy needs to survive the huge forces of launch, Max-Q (maximum dynamic pressure) and side booster separations.
After side booster separation, the core first stage will keep running couple more minutes until core separation. From this point, mission will become very similar to a Falcon 9 launch to Low Earth Orbit for the upper stage.
Secondary Mission: Landing Attempt(s!)
After booster separations, first stages will flip and boostback burn to return Landing Zone 1 and Landing Zone 2, just a couple miles south of Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 39A.
The core first stage will also boostback and it will land on one of the autonomous Spaceport Drop Ship's that SpaceX owns: Of Course I Still Love You, which is positioned 342km further in the Atlantic Ocean.
Falcon Heavy Payload: Elon Musk's Tesla Roadster!
Since no one paid for this mission and Elon is a big nerd, first payload of the Falcon Heavy is the Elon's Midnight Cherry Tesla Roadster :)
If the mission succeeds, Tesla Roadster will be go into the orbit of Mars. How awesome would that be if SpaceX succeeds :)
Actually we are not done yet. Tesla will stay in Mars orbit for couple million years while playing David Bowie's Space Oddity to the Solar System.
SpaceX Falcon Heavy Launch schedule:
February 6'th, 13:30-16:30 EST (18:30-21:30 UTC).
SpaceX Falcon Heavy Test Flight Live Stream
You can watch the live stream here from SpaceX's official YouTube channel.
Are you gonna watch the live stream? Of course you will :)
