BUSINESS STANDARD SpaceX carried out first commercial launch

CONTEXT:

  • SpaceX has carried out its first commercial launch with its Falcon Heavy rocket tasked with placing a Saudi satellite in orbit.
  • The rocket exerts 5.1 million pounds of thrust — that of more than a dozen jetliners.

BACKGROUND:

  • The rocket is to carry a Saudi Arabian satellite operated by Arabsat, a year after sending founder Elon Musk’s red Tesla roadster into orbit as a test.
  • The Falcon Heavy had been scheduled to lift off from the Kennedy Space Center on 11TH April but was delayed because of fierce winds in the upper atmosphere.
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