[ad_1]
SpaceX billed Elon Musk's Tesla Roadster as "an endless road trip past Mars" when it launched in February.
However, it is important that they have their point of view before orbiting.
The Roadster has reached its first apogee from the sun Where is Roadster? website, run by Ben Pearson, Ars Technica.
While the Cape Canaveral Elon Musk's Falcon Heavy – the most powerful in the world – was a big success, the red sports car overshot its touted mark for March.
It 's close to Mars – and to Earth – in two years' time, with it being at its closest to Earth at 51.7m km (32m miles) on 6 November 2020.
Rather than entering Mars' orbit, the Tesla looks to be a long-term path to the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
The website operator, Ben Pearson, told Ars Technica that there is no reason to believe that the Roadster's location was more than a little off target.
A SpaceX livestream showed the cruising through the Van Allen radiation belt in Earth's magnetosphere, with David Bowie's Space Oddity playing in the background and a note on the dashboard saying "Do not Panic".
Mr Musk, who wants to colonize Mars, said the approach was "kind of silly and fun, but I think that silly and fun things are important".
:: The Falcon Heavy is a space race game-changer
The 70-meter Falcon is powerful enough to carry a load of 64 metric tons – twice that of its nearest rival – and because of the affordable boosters is also cheaper – at about $ 90m per launch (£ 64m).
The next most powerful rocket, the Delta IV Heavy, can not be more expensive.
It may be the most powerful rocket in existence, but it is not the most powerful ever.
Saturn V, which took astronauts to the moon, could handle more payload, could the Soviet-era Energia.
Nevertheless, the successful test is set to pave the way for far larger commercial satellites being put into orbit.
Source link