Posted on 11/25/2005 7:18:38 AM PST by KevinDavis
light International Online news 10:00GMT: The US Army Space and Missile Defense Command (SMDC) has bumped the maiden flight of SpaceX Falcon 1, the first privately developed, liquid fueled rocket to reach orbit, from its official launch date today at 21:00 GMT to tomorrow at the same time.
Falcon 1 is also making history as the world's first all new orbital rocket in over a decade.
Designed from the ground up by SpaceX, Falcon 1 is a two stage rocket powered by liquid oxygen and purified, rocket grade kerosene.
At launch it is expected to accelerate to 17,000 mph (twenty-five times the speed of sound) in less than ten minutes, reachiing 500 km (just above the International Space Station).
The main engine of Falcon 1 (Merlin) will be the first all new American hydrocarbon booster engine to be flown in forty years and only the second new American booster engine of any kind in twenty-five years, says SpaceX.
(Excerpt) Read more at flightinternational.com ...
Cool stuff--this is a very small outfit doing this highly ambitious thing!!
Talked about this launch with an industry insider, was told was very cool, but "too small for launch insurance."
Hadn't thought of it that way...
I take it the intention is to REACH orbit, but not sustain it?
Yes, however, the goal is to deploy a satellite from US Air Force Acadamey
Good stuff!
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