New rocket

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Falcon Heavy, the new rocket at SpaceX, "can lift more than twice the payload of the next closest operational vehicle . . at one-third the cost." Twice the weight, one-third the cost, undeniably impressive.

 image: zmescience.com

Falcon 9 is the rocket SpaceX has already launched 15 times, and it's come back to land safely. Falcon Heavy uses three of those Falcon 9 engine cores for its first stage. All the cores have now tested successfully. The FH will come back to a landing pad on earth and be used again.

That is SpaceX's distinction - millions and millions of dollars saved, because the rockets can be re-used.

"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."

This is the rocket that will take NASA crew into space in 2018.