Elon Musk, CEO and chief rocket designer of Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) last week unveiled the dramatic final specifications and launch date for the Falcon Heavy, the world's largest rocket that will carry more payload to orbit or escape velocity than any vehicle in history, apart from the Saturn V moon rocket, which was decommissioned after the Apollo program. This opens a new world of capability for both government and commercial space missions,” Musk told a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington, DC.
“Falcon Heavy will arrive at our Vandenberg, California, launch complex by the end of next year, with liftoff to follow soon thereafter. First launch from our Cape Canaveral launch complex is planned for late 2013 or 2014.” Falcon Heavy can carry 53 metric tons is more than the maximum take-off weight of a fully-loaded Boeing 737-200 with 136 passengers. In other words, Falcon Heavy can deliver the equivalent of an entire commercial airplane full of passengers, crew, luggage and fuel all the way to orbit."
You can view the launch simulation video at: www.spacex.com Falcon Heavy’s first stage is made up of three nine-engine cores, which are used as the first stage of the SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle. It will be powered by SpaceX’s upgraded Merlin engines currently being tested at the SpaceX rocket development facility in McGregor, Texas. Falcon Heavy will generate 3.8 million pounds of thrust at liftoff. This is the equivalent to the thrust of fifteen Boeing 747s taking off at the same time. I hope they are paying for equivalent tree plantation to offset for CarbonExchange.
Anticipating potential astronaut transport needs, Falcon Heavy is also designed to meet NASA human rating standards, unlike other satellite launch vehicles. For example, this means designing to higher structural safety margins of 40% above flight loads, rather than the 25% level of other rockets, and triple redundant avionics.
Falcon Heavy will be the first rocket in history to do propellant cross-feed from the side boosters to the centre core, thus leaving the centre core with most of its propellant after the side boosters separate. The net effect is that Falcon Heavy achieves performance comparable to a three stage rocket, even though only the upper stage is airlift, further improving both payload performance and reliability. Cross feed is not required for missions below 100,000 lbs, and can be turned off if desired.
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FALCON HEAVY |
| Mass to LEO (200 km, 28.5 deg): |
53,000 kg (117,000 lb) |
| Overall Length: |
69.2 m (227 ft) |
| Width (body): |
3.6 m (12 ft) x 11.6 m (38 ft) |
| Width (fairing): |
5.2 m (17 ft) |
| Mass on liftoff: |
1,400,000 kg (3,100,000 lb) |
| Thrust on liftoff: |
17 MN (3,800,000 lbf) |
Despite being designed to higher structural margins than other rockets, the side booster stages will have a mass ratio (full of propellant vs empty) above 30, better than any vehicle of any kind in history. Which is also less costly than Delta IV Heavy? Basically Falcon will take your load to space at $1000 per pound.
If you have $50 to spend then you will be able to higher Falcon to take your safelight up to space. I am sure the Telecommunication safelights will return that and profit back in less than 2 years. Sadly this payload is still not enough for a human mission to Mars. One needs to send between 70-130 metric tons for that kind of mission.
| VEHICLE |
INCLINATION |
ORBIT |
PAYLOAD TO LEO |
| Falcon Heavy |
28.5 degrees |
200 km |
53,000 kg |
| Space Shuttle |
28.5 degrees |
200 km |
24,400 kg |
| Delta IV Heavy |
28.5 degrees |
407 km |
22,980 kg |
| Titan IV-B |
28.5 degrees |
150 km x175 km |
21,680 kg |
| Proton M |
51.6 degrees |
200 km |
21,000 kg |
| Ariane 5 ES |
51.6 degrees |
407 km |
20,000 kg |
| Atlas V 551 |
28.5 degrees |
200 km |
18,810 kg |
| Japan H2B |
30.4 degrees |
300 km |
16,500 kg |
| China LM3B |
28.5 degrees |
200 km |
11,200 kg |
Table of the world’s heavy lift vehicles from www.spacex.com, based on historical launch data. Only the Saturn V moon rocket, last flown in 1973, delivered more payload to orbit than Falcon Heavy.
| VEHICLE |
INCLINATION |
ORBIT |
PAYLOAD TO LEO |
| Falcon Heavy |
28.5 degrees |
200 km |
53,000 kg |
| Space Shuttle |
28.5 degrees |
200 km |
24,400 kg |
| Delta IV Heavy |
28.5 degrees |
407 km |
22,980 kg |
| Titan IV-B |
28.5 degrees |
150 km x175 km |
21,680 kg |
| Proton M |
51.6 degrees |
200 km |
21,000 kg |
| Ariane 5 ES |
51.6 degrees |
407 km |
20,000 kg |
| Atlas V 551 |
28.5 degrees |
200 km |
18,810 kg |
| Japan H2B |
30.4 degrees |
300 km |
16,500 kg |
| China LM3B |
28.5 degrees |
200 km |
11,200 kg |
Table of the world’s heavy lift vehicles, based on historical launch data. Only the Saturn V moon rocket, last flown in 1973, delivered more payload to orbit than Falcon Heavy.
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