Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


SpaceX Poised to Test Launch Largest Rocket Yet

by VOA News

   The private space company SpaceX is scheduled to test launch its
   largest rocket yet Tuesday, and if all goes well, it will also send a
   sports car into orbit around the sun.
   WATCH: Falcon Heavy Test Flight LIVE

   The Falcon Heavy rocket is poised to blast off from Florida's Kennedy
   Space Center. SpaceX chief and high-tech entrepreneur Elon Musk tweeted
   an update:

   It is equipped with three boosters and 27 engines designed to provide
   more than 2 million kilograms of thrust. If successful, it will be the
   most powerful rocket is use today, and the most powerful used since
   NASA's Saturn 5 rockets last carried astronauts to the moon 45 years
   ago.
   While such test rockets usually use things like steel or concrete slabs
   as payload, Musk has placed a cherry red Tesla roadster electric sports
   car on top of the rocket.

   With a mannequin "Starman" sitting at the wheel, the plan is for the
   car to be set in an orbit around the sun.
   In a tweet last month, Musk said he loves the thought of a car driving
   - apparently endlessly through space and, perhaps being discovered by
   an alien race millions of years in the future.