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NASA's upcoming Moon mission may use commercial rockets
Today, in a surprising move at a Senate hearing, NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine proposed that Orion, NASA's upcoming crew vehicle, may fly aboard a commercial rocket. This was the first time that the possibility had been broached by the NASA administrator.
SpaceX's Starman Roadster has ventured past Mars
Starman and its Tesla Roadster are officially a long, long way from home. SpaceX has confirmed that Falcon Heavy's test payload has passed Mars' orbit, putting it at one of its greatest distances away from the Sun (it should reach its far point on November 8th at 1.66AU, or 155 million miles). While it isn't about to rendezvous with Mars, this is no mean feat for an EV-toting mannequin. And you might want to remember this moment -- it's going to be a long time before Starman is close to Earth.
SpaceX's Falcon Heavy to launch military satellites by 2020
SpaceX's Falcon Heavy has won its first classified national security payload launch, proving that the company was able to demonstrate that its new rocket is reliable enough to ferry military satellites to space. The US Air Force has chosen to use the aerospace company's new heavy-lift spacecraft to take its AFSPC-52 satellite to orbit in the summer or fall of 2020. According to CNN, SpaceX had to compete with ULA (joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin) for the mission. The Air Force didn't reveal why it ultimately chose to use Falcon Heavy, but one of the possible reasons is cost.
SpaceX and 'Westworld' creators made a Falcon Heavy short film
Elon Musk promised a short film about the inaugural Falcon Heavy launch from the team behind Westworld, and he delivered. The entrepreneur has posted the video, Falcon Heavy and Starman, in two parts on Instagram (update: now on YouTube). It's not exactly a magnum opus, but it does a good job of encapsulating SpaceX's milestone in a short amount of time, including Starman's departure. Surprisingly, the video includes the loss of the center booster -- SpaceX isn't pretending the launch was all sunshine and roses. And naturally, there's no shortage of David Bowie for the soundtrack.
The Falcon Heavy launch brought me to tears
The buzz over SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket launch might have seemed to erupt out of nowhere, but for space enthusiasts, it was a long time coming. I've followed the development of the Falcon Heavy since it was announced in 2011, and I was on the ground at Cape Canaveral to see the launch in person, about three miles away at NASA's press site.
What's next for SpaceX after its successful Falcon Heavy flight?
Yesterday, SpaceX successfully launched its Falcon Heavy rocket to much fanfare. After numerous delays due to upper-level winds, the rocket lifted off at 3:45 PM ET on Tuesday. The rocket worked perfectly, delivering the test payload into orbit (a red Tesla roadster) and coasting for six hours before performing another engine burn to take it deeper into the solar system. SpaceX was even able to land two of the three boosters in beautiful synchronization. The core booster was lost because of low propellant; it slammed into the ocean at around 300 miles per hour, 300 feet from the drone ship.
Falcon Heavy completes its final maneuver as SpaceX turns to the BFR
After the successful launch of SpaceX's massive Falcon Heavy rocket, Elon Musk indicated there may be a change of plans coming. On the conference call where he confirmed the loss of its core booster, Musk said the company is focusing on the development of its BFR and has "kinda tabled" development of the Crew Dragon spacecraft intended for use with the Falcon Heavy. None of this seems final, however, and Musk also said that if there are delays on the BFR project and an "aspirational" projection that its upper spaceship portion could be ready for short flights next year, then things could change.
SpaceX confirms it lost the center core of the Falcon Heavy
SpaceX pulled off quite the feat today when it launched the Falcon Heavy rocket. What's more, it landed the two flanking boosters in perfect synchronized formation. But the fate of the core booster was unclear; now it appears that the center booster, which was supposed to land on a drone ship, was lost.
SpaceX successfully launches its Falcon Heavy rocket
Today, SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket successfully lifted off from Pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This was the first flight of the 27-engine rocket; so far, the mission appears to be going well. The rocket made it through the the moment of maximum stress and released the two outer cores, which have now successfully landed back at Kennedy Space Center.
Watch SpaceX's Falcon Heavy launch today at 3:45 PM ET (updated)
Today, SpaceX will attempt to launch the Falcon Heavy rocket for the first time. The launch window is between 1:30 PM ET and 4:00 PM ET. If you'd like to watch the launch (and trust me, you definitely want to), then you can livestream it below. The stream will go live about 15–20 minutes before the launch window opens. Because this is a demo flight of a new rocket, though, delays can and should be expected.
Elon Musk emphasizes the risks ahead of Falcon Heavy’s first mission
Tomorrow, SpaceX will attempt to launch its massive Falcon Heavy rocket for the very first time. If successful, it will be the most powerful rocket in operation and opens up the possibility of future crewed missions to the Moon or Mars. Today, Elon Musk gave a few more details about the launch attempt during a press call ahead of tomorrow's main event.
SpaceX animation shows the ideal outcome for the Falcon Heavy launch
SpaceX will attempt to launch its Falcon Heavy rocket for the first time tomorrow. It's no small feat and a lot could go wrong, but SpaceX has a released a video showing how the launch will work if everything goes according to plan.
SpaceX's Falcon Heavy launch gets a spacesuit-clad 'Starman'
The debut launch of the Falcon Heavy will be a serious and complex affair, but SpaceX boss Elon Musk is trying to boost the fun level to maximum. Not only is he using a cherry red Tesla Roadster as ballast for the first test, he's placed a dummy wearing SpaceX's stylish new space suit in the driver's seat, according to a new Instagram post. "Starman in Red Roadster," Musk wrote, a reference to the fact that the EV will supposedly be blasting David Bowie's Space Oddity.
SpaceX confirms it will try to land all of Falcon Heavy's boosters
SpaceX hasn't been shy about wanting to land Falcon Heavy's three booster rockets (it formally proposed its plans a year ago), but will it try now that the launch has finally been nailed down? Yes. Elon Musk's outfit has confirmed that it will attempt to land all three boosters on Falcon Heavy's launch, which is now slated for a 2.5-hour window starting at 1:30PM Eastern on February 6th. As expected, the two side boosters will come back to the on-ground landing zones at Cape Canaveral, while the center booster should land on a drone ship off the coast.
How Elon Musk plays on our science fiction dreams
Elon Musk has said that he wants to die on Mars -- after it's been colonized by his company SpaceX. He may not have the precise details yet, but Musk will figure out the mission in style: The SpaceX space suits are sleek and form-fitting, while his cherry red Tesla sports car will be aboard the maiden flight of the interplanetary Falcon Heavy rocket. Meanwhile, on Earth, he'll work on connecting our brains to computers through tiny electrodes, building underground networks of car sleds that function like a personal subway system, firing passenger trains through a vacuum tube at the speed of sound and replacing air travel with his Big Fucking Rocket (BFR) spaceship that gets passengers anywhere on the planet in under an hour. That's without mentioning his efforts to advance electric cars and solar energy. Or the fact that this week, he made $10 million in four days by selling promotional flamethrowers.
SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy launch is reportedly set for February 6th (updated)
It looks as though it's finally happening. SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket may have a launch date, according to Chris G. of NASASpaceflight.com. The rocket will launch no earlier than February 6th, with a window of 1:30 PM ET to 4:30 PM ET. There's a backup window on February 7th, just in case. We've reached out to SpaceX for confirmation.
SpaceX tests the Falcon Heavy's 27 engines ahead of first launch (updated)
Today, SpaceX performed a static fire test on its Falcon Heavy rocket. Also called the hold-down test, it involved loading the rocket with propellant and firing all of its 27 engines at once while the rocket was secured to the launch pad. The test appears to have been successful, though we are waiting on confirmation from SpaceX.
SpaceX plans to fire the Falcon Heavy rocket’s engines on Wednesday
SpaceX has announced a new (tentative) static fire date for its Falcon Heavy rocket. The test is currently scheduled for no earlier than Wednesday, according to Spaceflight Now.
SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy can’t launch during a government shutdown
We've been eagerly anticipating the static fire test of SpaceX's largest rocket yet, the Falcon Heavy, for a few weeks. Now, it appears that we'll have to wait a little longer. SpaceX has confirmed that the test will be affected by the US government shutdown, and it will not take place until operations have resumed. SpaceX spokesperson John Taylor gave Engadget the following statement: "We remain hopeful that the Congress will quickly resolve their differences and put our partners in the Air Force and NASA back to doing their important work as soon as possible. This shutdown impacts SpaceX's Falcon Heavy demonstration, which is critical for future NSS missions. It also impacts critical missions for our customers, including important international allies scheduled to launch shortly from Cape Canaveral and Vandenberg Air Force Base, as well as upcoming missions this spring to resupply the International Space Station."
SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket will test its 27 engines (updated)
We've been talking about SpaceX's new rocket, the Falcon Heavy, for years now, so it's exciting to see that the launch vehicle inching closer to its maiden voyage. Last week, the rocket was raised to a vertical position on Pad 39A before being lowered to make way for the Falcon 9 Zuma mission, which launched on Sunday evening. Now, the Falcon Heavy has returned to the pad to prepare for the static fire test, which will take place this week. The test window is tomorrow, January 10th, between 1PM and 7 PM ET.
