A powerful SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket vaulted over a torrent of burning exhaust from Kennedy Space Center on Tuesday, launching its sky-lighting twin-headed launch vehicle into orbit to launch a pilotless X-37B spaceplane into orbit for a secret, long-duration military mission.
At the nearby Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, another team of SpaceX engineers was counting down the launch of a single-core Falcon 9 rocket loaded with 23 Starlink internet satellites. These two flights are the California rocket maker’s 95th so far this year and, if all goes well, the Falcon family’s 96th.
Falcon Heavy did its part and put on a spectacular show for residents and tourists when its 27 Merlin engines, nine on each of three tethered Falcon 9 thrusters, ignited with a burst of flame and a ground-shaking roar at 8 a.m. 7 a.m. EST.
The rocket then climbed from Kennedy Space Center with more than 5 million pounds of thrust and lined up in a northeastward orbit; The engines accelerated rapidly as they consumed fuel and the vehicle lost weight.
The launch was originally planned for December 10 but flight delayed due to predicted bad weather and subsequent problems with ground equipment. The rocket was taken from the launch pad and returned to the SpaceX hangar for further work. It was withdrawn to pad 39A on Wednesday.
This time it was clear. Two side boosters, each making their fifth flight, helped the vehicle exit the dense lower atmosphere before diving away from the core stage two and a half minutes after launch. They immediately turned back, reversed course, and headed for the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Heralded by sonic booms that shook the windows, both thrusters settled for a perfect landing; The 40th and 41st landed in Florida. Overall, SpaceX has now successfully recovered 258 first stage boosters.
The central core stage’s nine engines continued firing for a minute and a half after the two belts separated, which then shut down and separated from the Falcon Heavy’s second stage. Unlike side thrusters, the core stage was expected to consume all its propellant and no recovery was planned.
No details regarding the second stage’s climb to the spacecraft’s intended orbit have been released. As always with such secret military missions, SpaceX ended its launch commentary after the side booster touched down about eight and a half minutes after liftoff.
Once Falcon Heavy lifted off the ground, SpaceX engineers at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station continued with plans to launch the single-core Falcon 9 and its payload of 23 Starlink satellites.
Going into flight, SpaceX had launched 5,627 Starlinks in 131 flights dating back to May 2019. Space statistician Jonathan McDowell said 5,211 of those launched to date are assumed to be functional. Thursday’s planned flight will bring the total number of Starlink launches so far this year to 63.
Falcon Heavy marks the rocket’s ninth flight, while the X-37B marks the seventh flight of this program.
Two nearly identical X-37B Orbital Test Vehicles, or OTVs, are operated by the Pentagon’s U.S. Space Force Rapid Capabilities Office. The vehicles are designed to serve as testbeds for avionics and advanced sensors, evaluate reusable spacecraft components, and provide a platform for experiments that can be sent to Earth for analysis.
The Boeing-built X-37B resembles a miniature space shuttle, complete with delta wings, heat shield plates and a compact payload bay. Unlike NASA’s space shuttle, which relies on fuel cells for power in orbit, the X-37B is equipped with an expandable solar array, allowing for extremely long flights.
The compact orbiters are designed to finish their missions with runway landings at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California or Kennedy Space Center in Florida, using 3-mile-long runways originally built for the space shuttle.
The X-37B’s most recent flight began on May 17, 2020, with its launch atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket. It ended with a landing at Kennedy Space Center on November 12, 2022, after 908 days and 21 hours in space.
During the program’s six previous flights, dating back to its first launch in April 2010, the two X-37Bs spent a combined 10.3 years in space. The planned duration of the final mission was not disclosed.
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