It’s time to bring out the big engines. Those on the Space Coast will soon be in for a treat.
Not one, but three Falcon 9 first-stage rockets that make up the Falcon Heavy are tentatively scheduled to blast off into Florida skies together this week to bring a weather satellite into orbit.
It’s been a while since Florida has seen this sight: two Falcon 9s supporting the main rocket charged with carrying the second stage and payload into space. The Falcon Heavy took off for the last time in Florida skies in late December from the Kennedy Space Center’s Pad 39A, carrying the Space Force’s stealth aircraft known as the X-37B. The only other comparable launch since then was the final three-core ULA Delta IV Heavy, which carried a payload for the National Reconnaissance Office in April from Cape Canaveral.
Why is the Falcon Heavy needed for this launch?
A bigger payload requires more energy, and with NOAA and NASA set to launch the GOES-U weather satellite as soon as Tuesday, June 25, they needed a bigger rocket. The satellite is comparable in size to a small school bus, so one of the heaviest booster rockets will be used. Enter the Falcon Heavy.
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SpaceX Coast Rockets: Falcon Heavy vs Falcon 9
Simply put, the Falcon Heavy is the first three stages of the Falcon 9 rocket – which together give three times the height. The Falcon 9 hub is fully loaded with the rocket’s second stage and payload. The payload, in this case the NOAA satellite, is wrapped in fairing to protect it on its way to space.
By comparison, the Falcon 9 that launches the Starlink missions is a single rocket. Just one of these single rockets is 229.6 ft tall with the second stage and has a diameter of 12 ft.
With three of these Falcon 9 rockets, the monster Falcon Heavy stands at the same height. However, it is much wider, giving it a width of 39.9 ft, which is comparable to almost three cars parked bumper to bumper.
According to SpaceX, the Falcon Heavy has completed nine launches, 17 booster landings and 14 booster flights.
The first successful Falcon Heavy took off in February 2018, carrying a red Tesla Roadster as its payload, along with a mannequin called “Starman” – who was decked out in a SpaceX spacesuit.
Falcon Heavy thrust: how powerful is this rocket?
Three Falcon 9 rockets – each with nine Merlin engines of power – give the Falcon Heavy vehicle the power of 27 Merlin engines at takeoff. Each of these 27 engines provides 190,000 lbs of thrust. According to SpaceX, this power provides more than five million pounds of thrust in total.
SpaceX says the Falcon Heavy can lift weight comparable to a 737 jet, along with all its fuel, cargo, passengers, and carry that weight into orbit.
Space X Falcon Heavy booster landing
SpaceX will recover the two Falcon 9 boosters. If they follow the procedure of previous flights, the two boosters will land on the Cape Canaveral landing site – emitting a double sonic boom. If SpaceX continues with the routine of past Falcon Heavy flights, the Falcon 9 core will explode over the ocean after completing its mission.
Landing all three boosters has proven to be a difficult task. While a main booster landed on a drone ship in the Atlantic in 2019, SpaceX was unsuccessful in returning it to port.
Get ready for Falcon Heavy sonic booms
As the two boosters land at SpaceX’s Landing Sites 1 and 2 on the coast of Cape Canaveral, two sonic booms will be heard on the Space Coast. As the boosters fall back to Earth, they travel faster than the speed of sound. This in turn breaks the sound barrier, releasing a noise comparable to a loud clap of thunder.
The bursts of sound will come while the amps are already going down, which may seem odd. Physics simply explains this situation as light travels faster than sound. Returning boosters will be seen before voiceovers are heard.
It can be a startling sight, especially if one has never seen it – the boosters seem to land silently before a loud, earth-shattering thump is heard.
When will the SpaceX Falcon Heavy launch?
On Tuesday, weather permitting on the Space Coast, the Falcon Heavy will blast off from Pad 39A of the Kennedy Space Center, carrying the NOAA/NASA GOES-U satellite into orbit.
GOES-U is NOAA’s latest weather satellite, which promises continuous tracking of hurricanes. Weather observation satellites, such as the GOES series, are important for places that experience these extreme weather phenomena – like Florida.
GOES-U will provide a valuable watch from above – observing hurricanes as they form. “We know about them because of the GOES satellites. They sit over the equator about 22,000 miles above Earth and keep a constant watch,” Dan Lindsey, a NOAA program scientist, told FLORIDA TODAY.
Be sure to follow the FLORIDA TODAY Space Team for the latest updates from the Space Coast.
Brooke Edwards is a space reporter for Florida Today. Contact him at bedwards@floridatoday.com or at X: @brookeofstars.
