After a very long wait, SpaceX finally launched the Falcon Heavy again. Its powerful rocket was the protagonist of USSF-44’s secret mission to place two US Space Force satellites into orbit. But attention was focused not on the takeoff itself, but on the spectacular double-simultaneous landing that Elon Musk’s signature achieved.
Approximately eight minutes after launch, the side rockets of the Falcon Heavy take off. managed to land at the same time in their places. The shocking scene, recorded at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, can be viewed live. official broadcast from SpaceX.
So the public could see from different cameras how the Falcon Heavy’s side thrusters are back without a hitch. Which clearly indicates that the efforts of the American company in the field of reusable rockets are yielding very positive results. The central part, meanwhile, fell into the sea.
Confidential mission, return to the ring Falcon Heavy
Information about the cargo that was launched into orbit using the Falcon Heavy is confidential.. The only thing known is that they are two satellites of the US Space Force; while its characteristics and purpose remain classified. In fact, only one of the two teams has been publicly identified. We are talking about TETRA-1 from Millennium Space Systems, a subsidiary of Boeing.
“TETRA-1 is a microsatellite built for various prototype missions in and around geostationary Earth orbit,” the manufacturer said on its website, without disclosing details.
The Falcon Heavy launch had fans: Elon Musk, certainly. The SpaceX CEO — and new owner of Twitter — has shared a video of the return of the side thrusters of his powerful rocket. The tycoon enthusiastically remarked boom sonix which were recorded during the landing procedure.
Let’s not forget that a sonic boom is the sound that accompanies shock waves when an object moves through the air at a speed greater than the speed of sound.
As for the future Falcon Heavy, it should be back in action before the end of the year. space rocket has two more missions for the remainder of 2022, one for NASA and one for the US Space Force. However, its implementation will depend on the absence of delays or setbacks. But that’s not all. Its roadmap includes a dozen releases to be developed over the next few months or years.
The USSF-44 mission was the 50th SpaceX launch in 2022. In addition, the successful return of the Falcon Heavy’s side boosters allowed the company to achieve 151 orbital rocket recovery.
Source: Hiper Textual
