SpaceX announces new mega-rocket - Falcon Heavy
06. 04. 11
The California-based company has announced plans for a new rocket which it claims will be the most powerful in the world - the Falcon Heavy.
The rocket would be able to lift 53 tonnes to low Earth orbit, more than any other rocket in existence. Only one other rocket in history has ever been able to lift more: The Saturn V rockets, used by NASA to send astronauts to the moon, could each lift 118 tonnes to low Earth orbit.
"This opens a new world of capability for both government and commercial space missions," announced SpaceX head Elon Musk.
The company says it plans to launch the rocket for the first time in 2013 or 2014 on a test flight. In the longer term, SpaceX plans to use the rocket to carry satellites to geosynchronous orbit and one day, perhaps to send astronauts to the moon or Mars (though multiple launches would be needed to loft all the necessary hardware for each mission).
The image below shows some of the key features of the new Falcon Heavy rocket:
This news item first appeared on the New Scientist website.
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