Company planning biggest rocket since man on moon

rangerssuck · 2011-04-11T13:53:50+00:00

Have we discussed this?WASHINGTON (AP) =97 A high-tech entrepreneur unveiled plans Tuesday tolaunch the world's most powerful rocket since man went to the moon.Space Exploration Technology has already sent the first private rocketand capsule into Earth's orbit as a commercial venture. It is nowplanning a rocket that could lift twice as much cargo into orbit asthe soon-to-be-retired space shuttle.The first launch is slotted for 2013 from California with follow-uplaunches from Cape Canaveral in Florida.Space X's new rocket called Falcon Heavy is big enough to send cargoor even people out of Earth's orbit to the moon, an asteroid or Mars.Only the long retired Saturn V rocket that sent men to the moon wasbigger."This is a rocket of truly huge scale," said Space X president ElonMusk, who also founded PayPal and manufactures electric sports cars.The Falcon Heavy could put 117,000 pounds into the same orbit as theInternational Space Station. The space shuttle hauls about 54,000pounds into orbit. The old Saturn V could carry more than 400,000pounds of cargo.The old Soviet Union had a giant moon rocket bigger than the FalconHeavy, but it failed in all four launch attempts. Another Sovietrocket, also bigger than Falcon Heavy and designed to launch itsversion of the space shuttle, had one successful flight more than 20years ago.While the new Space X rocket is designed initially for cargo, itsatisfies NASA's current safety requirements for carrying humans andafter several launches could carry people too, Musk said. He has saidthat if NASA does buys rides on commercial rockets, he would be ableto fly astronauts to the space station in his smaller Falcon 9 rocketand Dragon capsule within three years.Potential customers for the new larger rocket are NASA, the military,other governments and satellite makers.Musk said Falcon Heavy will be far cheaper than government or privaterockets. Launches are about $100 million each. He said the Air Forcepays two older more established...

Apr 11, 2011 63 Replies

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Ed Huntress 15 years ago

And what is the supposed relationship between Goebbels and ad hominem?

I don't follow Dan's reference there.

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rangerssuck 15 years ago

Well yeah, I was thinking along the lines of your entire comment having been definitional.

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John R. Carroll 15 years ago

Who knows.

I left my secret decoder ring at home. Don't you have yours handy? LOL

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Ed Huntress 15 years ago

Descriptive, perhaps...

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