Spacex tests new, larger rocket
Musk says test flight could happen in week
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Spacex fired up its newest, biggest rocket in a critical launch pad test Wednesday, advancing toward a long-anticipated test flight possibly in just a week.
The Falcon Heavy briefly roared to life for the first time at NASA’S Kennedy Space Center. All three boosters, 27 engines in all, were tested. The thunderous booms could be heard at the press site 3 miles away, as huge white clouds of engine exhaust billowed into a clear blue sky. Everything appeared normal: The 230-foot rocket stood tall and brilliantly white after the test on the historic pad once used by NASA’S Apollo moon rockets and space shuttles.
Spacex chief executive Elon Musk said an hour later that the firing was good. “Generated quite a thunderhead of steam. Launching in a week or so,” he said via Twitter.
The press site was busier than usual, as TV crews and other journalists gathered at midday for the test. There was no guarantee of a test firing Wednesday. Spacex had fueled the rocket before but then stood down for undisclosed reasons.
Wednesday’s firing appeared to last for about 10 seconds.
The Heavy — a triple-size version of Spacex’s frequent flier, the Falcon 9 — is tailor-made for spacecraft headed to the moon or Mars as well as extra-big satellites bound for lowEarth orbit.
The Heavy’s cargo for the test flight will be a Tesla Roadster belonging to Musk, who also heads the electric car company. Musk repeatedly has warned the rocket could explode. If successful, his red sports car will end up in a long, oval loop around the sun, traveling as far out as the orbit of Mars.