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SpaceX Conducts Successful Static Fire Test of Falcon Heavy

posted by martyb on Thursday January 25 2018, @05:22AM   Printer-friendly
from the moah-powah! dept.

An Anonymous Coward writes:

https://www.theverge.com/2018/1/24/16841580/spacex-falcon-heavy-rocket-static-fire-first-launch

Today, SpaceX simultaneously fired up all 27 engines on its new massive Falcon Heavy rocket — a crucial final test for the vehicle before its first flight in the coming weeks. An hour after the test, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk confirmed that the test was good, and that the Falcon Heavy will launch in "a week or so." When SpaceX gives an official target day and time, it'll be the first time a definitive launch date has been given for the rocket's inaugural voyage, a flight that was initially promised to happen as early as 2013.

SpaceX has posted a 31-second video of the Falcon Heavy test firing to the SpaceX YouTube channel.

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  • (Score: 2) by takyon on Thursday January 25 2018, @08:35PM

    by takyon (881) <takyonNO@SPAMsoylentnews.org> on Thursday January 25 2018, @08:35PM (#627843) Journal

    http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/01/successful-test-fire-massive-falcon-heavy-rocket-poised-boost-space-science [sciencemag.org]

    Other possible targets for Falcon Heavy include Saturn's moons Titan and Enceladus and the ice giants Neptune and Uranus. Stern, who leads a NASA mission that flew past Pluto in 2015, says teams are considering using the rocket to send a probe with enough fuel to slow down and orbit the distant world. SpaceX has said that Falcon Heavy could deliver 2 to 4 tons to the surface of Mars—opening the way to more ambitious missions than the 1-ton Curiosity rover.

    Astronomers are also thinking about what heavy lift can do for them. Each component of NASA's upcoming 6.2-ton James Webb Space Telescope, with a 6.5-meter mirror, had to be both lightweight and yet hardy enough to withstand rigorous shaking during launch, two often incompatible requirements. With Falcon Heavy's additional lift, researchers planning the Large UV Optical Infrared Surveyor telescope, a proposed mission for the 2020s with a mirror at least 9 meters across, could focus less on reducing weight and more on delivering a great scientific instrument, says Matt Mountain, president of the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy in Washington, D.C. "If we don't have to fight for mass, the testing is greatly simplified and you can launch more ambitious systems."

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