Posted on 02/04/2018 8:17:04 PM PST by BenLurkin
Elon Musk has been given the official green light to send his red Tesla Roadster into space.
The Federal Aviation Administration gave its official blessing to the launch when it issued a license to SpaceX on Friday for "A flight of the Falcon Heavy launch vehicle from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) transporting the modified Tesla Roadster (mass simulator) to a hyperbolic orbit."
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SpaceX confirmed in a release on Saturday that it's targeting the launch for Tuesday during a two-and-a-half hour window that begins at 10:30 a.m. PT Tuesday. So if all goes perfectly, Falcon Heavy will fire up its 27 Merlin engines at that time, but all launches, especially a demonstration launch like this one, are subject to delays.
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If Musk's Roadster and Falcon Heavy do survive liftoff and the journey out of Earth's gravity well, we could be treated to another sort of spectacle: SpaceX's first attempt at landing three first-stage rocket boosters nearly simultaneously. Musk on multiple occasions has also attempted to lower expectations for Falcon Heavy's first launch, warning that it may end in spectacular, but explosive failure.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnet.com ...
I don’t know. Maybe investors looks at things like Tesla’s top consumer satisfaction rating, or the fact that 500,000 people put down $1,000 deposits on a car sight unseen. Maybe they notice that Tesla is also an energy company (solar cells and storage). Maybe they look at the CEO’s history of starting new businesses and the intelligence of Tesla tech employees and realize that Tesla can start a new division very quickly when there’s opportunity.
Personally, I see a fad.
But then Google, Facebook and Amazon have yet to make a profit and yet are worth billions. So, what do I know. .
Musk has generated more tax revenue than the “subsidies” his companies have received. Net win for taxpayers.
Google sells ads via a search engine;
Facebook sells ads via social connections and;
Amazon sells other people’s stuff to consumers.
None of them actually make anything tangible. Tesla and SpaceX, on the other hand, do make tangible goods - but get knocked for an ad.
Go figure ...
You should read the recent biography on Musk.
It’s not all positive, but I’ve got to warn you, most of it is.
So was Thomas Edison - often to his own detriment. You could have asked Nikola Tesla, or any of the other talented young inventors Edison hired at Menlo Park.
That was one impressive launch and the landing of the boosters was....er...awesomer! Musk’s Tesla with Starman zipping through the Solar System is just icing on the cake.
Haven’t felt so giddy since the first Shuttle launch.
bttt
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