We have liftoff!
SpaceX successfully launched its Falcon Heavy rocket on Tuesday afternoon, ending years of anticipation and a couple hours of last-minute delays.
John Timmer, science editor at Ars Technica, explains why this historic launch is such “an amazing achievement.”
“Traditionally, these huge launch vehicles have been the domain of governments,” Timmer told Cheddar, referring to the U.S. and Russian space programs.
This marks the first time a private company has ever developed a rocket like this.
The launch puts the Elon Musk-led company ahead of Blue Origin, run by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. Timmer says that company plans its own high-power rocket launch but is still a few years away.
And Roscosmos, the Russian space program, also tried to launch a rocket with many small engines but “failed spectacularly,” a stark contrast to the Falcon Heavy, which was propelled by 27 engines.
“SpaceX, between current computer control systems and their careful manufacturing, has apparently solved the problem necessary to send something into orbit with that many engines,” Timmer said.
The Falcon Heavy launched from Kennedy Space Center at 3:45 pm ET on Tuesday. Musk added some showmanship to the event, by including his own Tesla roadster as the payload. By the end of the day the roadster was on a trajectory that is planned to put it in a long elliptical orbit around Mars.
For full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/despite-doubts-falcon-heavy-has-a-successful-launch).
Chip Giller, co-founder, and Amy Seidenwurm, Chief of Programs and Strategy at Agog: The Immersive Media Institute, discuss how the organization uses the virtual world to make real change.
Luminary founder and CEO Cate Luzio shares some of the company’s latest Women’s History Month events and why there’s so much to celebrate about women in the workplace.
WSJ reporter Ray Smith breaks down why more companies are offering ‘dry’ promotions – a responsibility or title bump with no pay raise – and the pros and cons of accepting them.
Apple says a Justice Department antitrust lawsuit accusing it of engineering an illegal monopoly in smartphones in the U.S. is “wrong on the facts and the law.”
As Reddit shares begin trading at the NYSE, ‘Einstein of Wall Street’ Peter Tuchman breaks down the social platform’s debut and what it means for the overall IPO market in 2024.
CEO and co-founder of Alix, Alexandra Mysoor, discusses why it’s so important for everyone, regardless of income, to both plan and settle their estates.
After the Fed forecast three cuts to come in 2024, Kevin D. Mahn, President and CIO at Hennion & Walsh Asset Management breaks down why the market looks strong, and he sees some reasons for concern in Reddit’s choice to IPO.
Federal Reserve officials signaled that they still expect to cut their key interest rate three times in 2024 despite signs that inflation was surprisingly high at the start of the year.
