Elon Musk is really going to send a car into space

The information that most thought was a joke has just been confirmed - Elon Musk really will send a Tesla Roadster car into space! It will be the first payload of the new Falcon Heavy rocket, which is basically Falcon 9 with two additional first boosters attached.

SpaceX fans have been waiting for the Falcon Heavy launch since 2013. Since then, the start has been regularly postponed for six months. Now, however, the launch date is approaching - FH will most likely be launched in the second half of January. Currently, as you can see, the payload, launch pad and the rocket are being prepared.

Falcon Heavy will be the most powerful, active rocket in the world. It will be able to carry as much as 63800 kg of cargo to LEO (Low Earth Orbit). This is over two times as much as Space Shuttle was able to lift into space.

During the first test missions of new rockets, a "mass simulator" is inserted under the payload fairing. Usually it is a steel block of appropriate weight. Elon Musk went further, however, and decided to launch the first car produced by his other company – Tesla. The Roadster will be launched into a heliocentric orbit, where it will spend millions of years.

After such an event, we can be sure that Elon Musk will be remembered and our children will read about it in textbooks. Even if the mission is not successful, the launch promises to be extremely exciting. During the Falcon Heavy mission, we can expect as many as three landings! Two side boosters will land on Landing Zone 1 and Landing Zone 2 at Cape Canaveral, Florida and the third, central booster will land on the autonomous spaceport drone ship (ASDS) named Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY) in the Atlantic Ocean.