SpaceX Fires a Car to Mars on World's Most Powerful Rocket

World

SpaceX's Falcon Heavy megarocket has finally blasted off from the launchpad at Cape Canaveral, carrying Elon Musk's cherry red Tesla Roadster

TheFalcon Heavy successfully lifted off on Tuesday afternoon. It can be seen above soaring high over the Cape Canaveral site. 'You've heard the call out - vehicle is supersonic,' the announcer said, as the rocket soared through the sky to massive cheers from the crowd below

The Falcon Heavy successfully lifted off on Tuesday afternoon. It can be seen above soaring high over the Cape Canaveral site. 'You've heard the call out - vehicle is supersonic,' the announcer said, as the rocket soared through the sky to massive cheers from the crowd below

Afterleaving Earth, the Roadster and its passenger 'Starman' are now off to travel alone on a 250 million mile (400m km) journey into deep space, propelled by the main module, which separated from the Falcon Heavy shortly after launch. The dummy and the car can be seen above far above Earth following today's successful launch

After leaving Earth, the Roadster and its passenger 'Starman' are now off to travel alone on a 250 million mile (400m km) journey into deep space, propelled by the main module, which separated from the Falcon Heavy shortly after launch. The dummy and the car can be seen above far above Earth following today's successful launch

The journey to Mars orbit will take about six months, with the module and the attached Roadster traversing roughly 140 million miles (225 million kilometres).

Now that the rocket and its payload have successfully made it through the ascent – a critical stage in which Musk himself has admitted it risked blowing up – the SpaceX boss says the sports car ‘will be in deep space for a billion years.’

A view inside the Roadster after today's launch showed one last look at the dummy, dubbed Starman, behind the wheel on its journey to Mars.

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