National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Launch Vehicle

Falcon 9 is a two-stage rocket designed and manufactured by SpaceX for the reliable and safe transport of satellites and the Dragon spacecraft into orbit. As the first rocket completely developed in the 21st century, Falcon 9 was designed from the ground up for maximum reliability. Falcon 9's simple two-stage configuration minimizes the number of separation events — and with nine first-stage engines, it can safely complete its mission even in the event of an engine shutdown.

Falcon 9 made history in 2012 when it delivered Dragon into the correct orbit for rendezvous with the International Space Station, making SpaceX the first commercial company ever to visit the station. Since then SpaceX has made multiple flights to the space station, both delivering and returning cargo for NASA. Falcon 9, along with the Dragon spacecraft, was designed from the outset to deliver humans into space and under an agreement with NASA, SpaceX is actively working toward that goal.

+ SpaceX Falcon 9 v1.1 Launch Vehicle

Falcon 9 with Fairing (click image for larger view)	The nine Merlin engine Octaweb.
Technical Overview Height 68.4m 224.4 ft Mass 505,846kg 1,115,200 lb Payload to LEO 13,150kg 28,991 lb Diameter 3.7m 12 ft Stages 2 Payload to GTO 4,850kg 10,692 lb

Launch Site

+ Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

Launch Readiness Date

The TESS launch date is NLT June 2018 (the current working launch date is April 2018).