Enlarge / A Falcon Heavy rocket rolls toward the launch pad on Saturday, January 14, 2023.
Trevor Mallman
4:00 PM ET Sunday Update: SpaceX has delayed the launch of its Falcon Heavy rocket one day until Sunday evening, at 5:56 PM ET (22:56 UTC), after preparations for Saturday’s test fell behind schedule. But now the rocket and local weather in Florida are cooperating to get the tri-nuclear booster up on time.
The dusk launch attempt should look spectacular and you can watch live starting about 10 minutes before the launch window opens.
Launch of USSF-67.
Original post: It’s been nearly five years since the massive Falcon Heavy rocket made its successful debut launch in February 2018. Since then, however, SpaceX’s heavy rocket has only flown three additional times.
Why? In part, that’s because there just isn’t that much demand for a heavy-lift rocket. Another factor is that SpaceX has increased the performance of its Falcon 9 rocket so much that it can perform many of the missions originally envisioned for the Falcon Heavy. However, the main reason for the slow rate is due to the lack of readiness of the payloads for the new missile, especially by the US Department of Defense.
But now that trickle of Falcon Heavy launches could turn into a flood. As early as Saturday, the first of potentially five launches of the heavy-lift rocket this year could take place from Florida.
First up is the USSF-67 mission. This will be the second Falcon Heavy mission for the US Space Force, and the rocket will carry two payloads into geostationary orbit. The first of the two vehicles on board is named CBAS-2, for continuous expansion of SATCOM broadcasting. It’s essentially a communications relay satellite that the Space Force says will support operations by augmenting “existing military satellite communications capabilities and continuously broadcasting military data via space-based satellite relay links.”
Advertising
The second payload, called Long Duration Propulsive ESPA-3A, is actually a spacecraft “bus”. It will accept five different, smaller payloads and provide power and propulsion before launching those vehicles into different orbits. Among these five payloads is a prototype “crypto/encryption interface” satellite that will provide a secure space-to-ground communications capability.
“This is a complex mission and really represents what Assured Space Access is all about, and that’s why we’re so excited about this upcoming launch,” said Maj. Gen. Stephen Purdy, executive director of the Assured Space Access program, in a news release.
SpaceX completed a hot test of the rocket on Tuesday and announced that the vehicle is ready for liftoff. The rocket will use a brand new main stage and side-mounted boosters that have flown in space once, such as the side-mounted boosters on the USSF-44 Falcon Heavy mission, which launches on November 1, 2022. SpaceX will again attempt to restore these side boosters. in its ground landing zones, for a future mission. The central core will be spent.
Launch is scheduled for 17:55 ET (22:55 UTC) from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. Weather conditions are favorable for the launch attempt.
The timing of this launch is remarkable as the launch window opens just 10 minutes after sunset. It will be the first time the Falcon Heavy rocket has launched at dusk and should be visible for hundreds of miles up and down the Florida coast. Trevor Mallman will be on hand at Ars to provide unique views of this large launch vehicle.
Future Falcon Heavy missions this year include a commercial mission for the satellite communications company ViaSat in March, the USSF-52 Space Force mission in April, a commercial mission for EchoStar in May and the Psyche asteroid mission for NASA in October. All these dates, as always in the startup business, are subject to change.
Add Comment