Falcon Heavy launches USSF-44 mission

14. 11. 2022 0 By Space Seeker

On Nov. 1 SpaceX launched the world’s most powerful rocket, the Falcon Heavy. After more than three years long break, it took a US Space Force contracted classified payload and at least one rideshare satellite to geostationary orbit. The Falcon Heavy consists of three Falcon 9 rockets strapped together, with 27 engines powering the first stage and one engine in the second stage.

This mission marked the fourth launch of this rocket and SpaceX’s first mission direct to geostationary orbit (GEO). Both side boosters successfully landed back at Landing Zones 1 and 2 (LZ-1 and LZ-2) at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and the new center core, B1066, was expended after completing its mission, which is why it didn’t feature any landing legs or grid fins.

The second stage was equipped with a special gray paint layer on the second stage’s RP-1 tank to ensure that the RP-1 did not freeze between burns. Merlin engine ignited a total of three times, before deploying the satellites. The USSF-44 mission was SpaceX’s 50th launch of 2022. Despite the long wait for this mission, Falcon Heavy will continue launching satellites, including military, civil, and commercial launches scheduled throughout the coming years.

Photos by SpaceX
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