SpaceX Falcon Heavy completes static fire test

SpaceX successfully completed the static fire test of its new Falcon Heavy rocket. Elon Musk's space flight startup scored great successes with the Falcon 9 series and now the firm is gearing up for the maiden flight of its most powerful rocket to date.

The Falcon Heavy basically consists of a strengthened Falcon 9 core with two additional Falcon 9 boosters. Each Falcon 9 booster has nine Merlin engines, so for this 12-second test to be successful all 27 rocket engines had to ignite simultaneously. Falcon Heavy is the most powerful rocket since the Saturn V.

This will be a must-see event, the odds of something going wrong are high but if things go as planned the first Falcon Heavy launch will deliver a Tesla Roadster into a precessing Earth-Mars orbit around the Sun. Once the three boosters have done their job, they will perform a re-entry burn and will attempt to land on a ground-based or sea-based landing platform. Landing a single rocket is a feat that has been achieved by no one else than SpaceX, so doing the same trick with three rockets will be quite a sight to behold!

No launch date has been set yet, but Elon Musk promises it should happen in a week or so.

Falcon Heavy hold-down firing this morning was good. Generated quite a thunderhead of steam. Launching in a week or so. pic.twitter.com/npaqatbNir

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 24 januari 2018

My raw video of the #SpaceX Falcon Heavy static-fire at Kennedy Space Center. Come for the cloud plumes, stay for the sound.

A French space reporter just yelled "It's like the 4th of July!" pic.twitter.com/vJssukqgIz

— Robin Seemangal (@nova_road) 24 januari 2018