PEOPLE describe rocket engines as thunderous. Standing nearly 5 kilometres from SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket as it took off for the first time, it felt more like I was inside a thundercloud.
The success of the 6 February launch changed the game for commercial space flight. At 70 metres tall and with three boosters containing 27 engines, Falcon Heavy is the most powerful rocket on the market. It is capable of putting 63,800 kilograms into low Earth orbit or taking 16,800 kilograms to Mars.
This first flight was a test, designed to show that the rocket can carry a payload to space without exploding. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk chose to send up his red Tesla Roadster, with a dummy named Starman at the wheel.
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The launch went off without a hitch, and the three boosters disconnected from the rest of the rocket and flew back down to Earth. The first two landed almost simultaneously on their launch pads. But the third did not touch down so gently. It hit the sea going nearly 500 kilometres per hour, destroying two engines on the drone ship it was meant to land on.
In the following hours, Starman and his car hurtled through the Van Allen belts – zones of intense radiation around Earth – and flew towards Mars. The car ended up on an orbit that will take it past Mars and near the asteroid belt, where it will travel as far as 254 million kilometres away from the sun. With this launch, Falcon Heavy has proved its ability to send payloads to Mars and beyond.
“With such an ambitious mission so close, it is time to think about who is in the driver’s seat”
The atmosphere at Cape Canaveral was one of incredulous elation as video of the Roadster flying away from Earth streamed to the press room televisions and the public. While some bristled, many reacted with glee and disbelief to the car hovering above Earth. It was fun, it was silly and it was beautiful. It was a symbol of the beginning of a new age of space exploration.
But the car and its passenger made many wonder: was this launch about progress in space, or just a giant advert? The culture of private space flight is still under construction, and SpaceX is becoming a dominant builder. The firm has broken into a market historically dominated by governments. Customers can launch cargo on Falcon Heavy for just $90 million, far cheaper than other rockets that approach its size and even some smaller ones.
Ultimately, Musk wants to put humans on Mars. This launch was a step toward his dream, but Falcon Heavy will not carry humans. Musk hopes that there will soon be a bigger, better option on the launch pad. People hoping to fly to the moon or Mars aboard a SpaceX rocket will have to wait for the planned BFR rocket.
Musk said he hopes to test fly the BFR in the next three to four years. If the timeline gets pushed back, SpaceX will reconsider putting humans aboard Falcon Heavy.
Either way, SpaceX is one step closer to being the first private firm to take humans to the moon and beyond. With such an ambitious mission close enough to touch, it is time to think about who is in the driver’s seat.
This article appeared in print under the headline “SpaceX proves Mars is in reach”
