Falcon Heavy is the name of a highly anticipated SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket that’s set to launch for the first time on 6th Feb 2018. Liftoff can happen anytime between 1:30 pm and 4 pm ET.
The Falcon Heavy has a $90 million sticker cost. That is 45% more costly than the Falcon 9 rocket SpaceX has utilized for each mission going back to 2012. But, the Falcon Heavy is basically three Falcon 9s tied together, and it’ll brag around three times the push of the Falcon 9.
When Falcon Heavy lifts off in 2018, it will be the most capable operational rocket on the world by a factor of two. With the capacity to lift into orbit nearly 64 metric tons (141,000 lb)- – a mass more prominent than a 737 jetliner stacked with travelers, team, gear and fuel- Falcon Heavy can lift more than double the payload of the following nearest operational vehicle, the Delta IV Heavy, at 33% the cost. Falcon Heavy draws upon the proven heritage and reliability of Falcon 9.
Its first stage is made out of three Falcon 9 nine-engine centers whose 27 Merlin motors together produce more than 5 million pounds of thrust at liftoff, equal to approximately eighteen 747 aircraft. Just the Saturn V moon rocket, last flown in 1973, conveyed more payload to orbit. Falcon Heavy was designed from the beginning to convey people into space and restores the possibility of flying missions with crew to the Moon or Mars.
First Stage
Three centers make up the primary phase of Falcon Heavy. The side cores, or boosters, are connected at the base and at the top of the center core’s liquid oxygen tank. The three cores, with an aggregate of 27 Merlin engines, create 22,819 kilonewtons (5.13 million pounds) of push at liftoff. Not long after liftoff the middle center engines are throttled down. After the side cores separate, the center core engines throttle back up to full thrust.
- Cores – 3
- Engines – 27
- Thrust At Sea Level – 22,819 kN5,130,000 lbf
- Thrust In Vaccum – 24,681 kN5,548,500 lbf
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCc16uozHVE
Second Stage
Falcon Heavy draws upon Falcon 9’s demonstrated outline, which minimizes stage separation events and maximizes reliability. The second-stage Merlin engine, indistinguishable to its partner on Falcon 9, delivers the rocket’s payload to circle after the fundamental engines cut off and the main stage centers isolated. The motor can be restarted various circumstances to put payloads into an assortment of orbits including low Earth, geosynchronous exchange orbits (GTO) and geosynchronous orbits (GSO).
- Engine – 1
- Burn Time- 397sec
- Thurst In Vacuum – 934 kN210,000 lbf
Booster
Each of Falcon Heavy’s side cores, or boosters, is equal to the primary phase of a Falcon 9 rocket with nine Merlin engines. At liftoff, the boosters and the middle center all work at full thrust. Not long after liftoff, the middle center engines are throttled down. After the side centers partitioned, the middle center engines throttle go down.
Three Nine Engine Cores
Inside each of Falcon Heavy’s three cores is a group of nine Merlin engines. These same engines control Falcon 9, empowering efficiencies that make Falcon Heavy the most savvy overwhelming lift dispatch vehicle in the world. With an aggregate of 27 first-stage engines,Falcon Heavy has engine-out capability that no other launch vehicle can match—under most payload scenarios, it can sustain more than one unplanned engine shutdown at any point in flight and still successfully complete its mission.
Watch the Launch
The Falcon Heavy has a $90 million sticker cost. That is 45% more costly than the Falcon 9 rocket SpaceX has utilized for each mission going back to 2012. You can watch the launch here http://www.spacex.com/webcast