Tuesday, February 06, 2018

Falcon Heavy Test Launch Successful

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Space X has been busy since 2010 trying to not only develop a reusable rocket called the Falcon 9, but a heavy launch vehicle for commercial space purposes.   They also want it to be able to be used for manned and military launch missions, to launch commercial and military satellites, space probes and supply missions for the International Space Station.

The US hasn't had a space vehicle of its own since the retirement of the space shuttles in 2011, and a super heavy lift rocket since the Saturn V was retired in 1973.  NASA's successor to the Saturn V called the Space Launch System or SLS is under development .

Image result for space x logo
That's why the Elon Musk financed Falcon Heavy project has had people's attention.  It has also had the attention of NASA, the military, international space agencies and other commercial space rivals.,
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The Space X Falcon Heavy is the world largest rocket, hence the delays in its development to srt out engineering challenges and aerodynamic problems that have cropped up.

Yesterday the Falcon Heavy test flight, carrying Elon's Musk's Tesla roadster and a mannequin in the drivers seat as a payload, successfully launched from the historic Pad 39A from which the Apollo 11 mission was launched

   

The only glitches in th launch were the reusable center tank not landing on the drone ship and the cruising burn lasting a little longer than planned and putting the rocket on a trajectory toward the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

But for the most part the lest launch was a success.    W'll have to see what happens next. 
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