February 6


6 February 2018


Falcon Heavy test flight launch from LC-39A. Credit: SpaceX

On February 6, 2018, at 20:45 UTC, Falcon Heavy test flight, the maiden flight of a partially reusable heavy-lift launch vehicle, was launched from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The rocket carried a dummy payload, a Tesla Roadster car belonging to SpaceX founder Elon Musk with a dummy dubbed "Starman", into a heliocentric orbit.

   The second stage fired three times before placing the dummy payload in a heliocentric orbit, with an aphelion of 1.66 au, beyond Mars. The payload has an orbital period of 1.53 years. The first four hours of the flight were streamed live on YouTube. The car is mounted on an inclined customized adapter and will not be separated from the stage. On the payload adapter is a plaque with the names of 6000 SpaceX employees.

   Both side boosters successfully returned to land almost simultaneously on the ground at Landing Zones 1 and 2 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The sole objective not completed was the landing of the central core. The core attempted to return to the autonomous spaceport drone ship "Of Course I Still Love You" but failed to light two of the three engines during the landing burn. The core crashed into the ocean 100 metres away from the drone ship at 500 kilometres per hour, causing damage to two of the drone ship's station-keeping thrusters.

   The successful test introduced the Falcon Heavy as the most powerful rocket in operation at the time, producing 22 MN of thrust and having more than twice the payload capacity of the next most powerful rocket, United Launch Alliance's Delta IV Heavy.

The two boosters landing at LZ-1 and LZ-2 at Cape Canaveral. Credit: SpaceX

"Starman" dummy seated in the Roadster over Australia. Credit: SpaceX

Musk's Roadster attached to the upper stage of the Falcon Heavy rocket. Credit: SpaceX

Last transmitted view en route away from Earth. Camera was mounted on external boom. Credit: SpaceX


© 2026, Andrew Mirecki

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