Vehicle Details
| Height | 70 m class |
|---|---|
| Liftoff mass | ~1,420 t class |
| First stage engines | 27 Merlin 1D across three cores |
| Upper stage | Merlin Vacuum |
| Mission use | heavy satellites, high-energy science missions, national security payloads |
SpaceX reference study
Falcon Heavy
heavy-lift launch vehicle. Architecture: Three Falcon 9-derived first-stage cores, 27 Merlin engines at liftoff, reusable side boosters on selected missions.
Use in design studyLaunch visual
Reusable launch vehicle image
This page includes the generated launch image as an in-page visual, tied to vehicle architecture and mission delivery.
AeroVectrix Study Notes
- Falcon Heavy demonstrates clustered-core scaling and booster recovery logistics.
- AeroVectrix study focus: cross-core structural loads, staging events, propellant crossfeed trade history, acoustic environment, and recovery economics.
Working Model
Ascent
Mission begins with thrust-to-weight margin, guidance through dense atmosphere, max-Q load management, and staging when the lower stage has delivered useful impulse.
Staging
Separation events must protect vehicle attitude, avoid recontact, confirm engine start conditions, and preserve payload environment limits.
Mission Assurance
Public vehicle studies should track assumptions, review dates, risk areas, and unknowns rather than overclaim exact proprietary data.