The Falcon Heavy will launch a mysterious, new and larger Pentagon vehicle into orbit
SpaceX is working intensively on a new interplanetary transport system in the form of the Starship ship and the SuperHeavy rocket. Before they fly, however, we will see Falcon Heavy in the sky once again in an unusual mission.
It is currently the most powerful rocket in use in the world, with only 3 flights to date. It promises that the next one will be spectacular, because it will be an undertaking for the Pentagon. Elon Musk's company has just won a tender for a secret US military mission. The contract is worth as much as $316 million.
What's amazing, there is only one start for this amount, so it's about something really big. We can guess that this is some very advanced spy satellite or a new generation spacecraft, which is large enough that it must be launched into orbit with the most powerful rocket, which is the Falcon Heavy.
The disclosed information shows that SpaceX will have to modify the cargo cover for this mission, or in fact extend it. But it is not everything. Vertical payload integration is also involved, which means the company will have to slightly modify the famous LC-39A platform, from where the experimental Dragon-2 manned capsule flight to the space home recently took place.
Experts speculate that we may be dealing with a new research vehicle. Perhaps it will be the successor to the X-37B mini-shuttle, which has been flying into orbit for many years and spending more and more time there. Recently, NASA announced that it intends to conduct orbit experiments to prepare for a manned flight to the moon. The new vehicle was to enable the implementation of experiments on a much larger scale.