Congrats to SpaceX on the successful launch of Falcon Heavy, with a Tesla for ballast.
And yes, recovering two boosters simultaneously on adjacent pads is showing off, but of the best kind!
FALCON HEAVY LANDING TWO BOOSTERS SIMULTANEOUSLY 02/06/2018
One of the main goals of this launch was to not blow up the launch pad, since that would:
- halve the number of pads available
- take a year to rebuild
- and cost about $50 million.
Although it’s always uplifting to see a successful launch, it’s actually valuable to have failures early-on. Having a successful first launch means the rocket was likely over-engineered (ie. heavy.) Hopefully review of the sensor data can find something worth investigating and fixing before launching satellites or people.
One launch doesn’t mean the mechanical and acoustical vibrations between the 27 engines is dampened enough, or even understood at this point.
SpaceX launches Falcon Heavy, the world’s most powerful rocket
WATCH LIVE: SpaceX to Launch Falcon Heavy Rocket #MarsRocket @3:45pm EST delayed