Falcon Heavy Rocket Launch

I have always been very interested in space science and flight. When I was young I was a member of the British Interplanetary Society but I left in 1965. This was an economy measure as we had just married and I was hard up. It was a shame as I missed the details of the run up to the Apollo missions culminating in a lunar landing in 1969. Much has happened in the last fifty years but the technology of rocketry has scarcely changed.

The Falcon Heavy is the largest rocket flying today although smaller than the Saturn V, the Apollo moon rocket. The first trial launch was on Tuesday 6 Feb and after weather delays left earth about 20.45. I was watching the live broadcast by Space X on Youtube. To say it was spectacular would be an understatement but in many ways the highlight was the near simultaneous landings of two of first stage rockets. This was near balletic in its grace and precision.

The launch was momentous in two ways. Firstly it means that heavy lift launchers are back after a fifty year gap. Secondly and more fundamentally it establishes Space X and its visionary founder, Elon Musk, as the premier company in space technology. Musk has the avowed intention to build and fly an even larger craft ( Big Falcon Rocket ) to enable travel to Mars. Musk ultimately seeks to go further and establish a Mars colony.

Mars is the most obvious planet among the solar system to make a target. It is the next to earth, rather smaller but with a surface which is increasingly understood following a series of unmanned reconnaissance flights. Mars does have many negative features such as a very thin atmosphere, extremes of temperature and no surface water. However early in its existence Mars was very different and there is a possibility that  elementary life existed there. Although Mars is the nearest planet to earth it is still a long way distant, about 20 light minutes. A journey would take perhaps 6 months depending on circumstances.

This was the first trial of a complete Falcon Heavy. Rather than a concrete block as payload it amused Musk to use a Tesla roadster car with a space suited manikin ( nicknamed Starman )  in the drivers seat. The payload was playing David Bowie’s Space Oddity on a loop until its batteries gave out after about 12 hours. In a nod to Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy the dash had a notice saying “don’t panic”.

Although this seems rather silly it has been a PR triumph. Many media outlets have focussed on the car in reporting. The pictures of the car in space have been spectacular. Musk is also head and biggest shareholder in Tesla so the publicity for the car helps that company. As Tesla has been struggling a bit of late with production of its new mid range model this should be helpful.

All this suggests Space X is not like the rather bland NASA. Although NASA does have some heavy lift plans they are years away. Meantime Space X is increasingly diverting its resources to developing a new, more powerful, engine and designing Big Falcon Rocket which will be larger still. To give a sense of scale Falcon Heavy is about 2/3 as capable as Saturn V the Apollo moon landing vehicle. To date Saturn V, which was retired after Apollo, remains the largest successful rocket.

Space is no longer the preserve of state organisations. Space X is a private company. Some way behind is Blue Origin which has big rockets in development. In particular Blue Origin is developing a large rocket engine which it has presold to United Launch Alliance the largest US launch organisation today. Blue Origin is the creature of Jeff Bezos the controller of Amazon. There is money to be made launching satellites for many operators not to mention in space tourism. In addition NASA pays for access from earth to the international space station.

 No poem for a while now so here is an amusing limerick. Hope it is not too sexist.

A vigorous fellow named Bert
Was attracted by every new skirt
Oh, it wasn’t their minds
But their rounded behinds
That excited this loveable flirt