How to look at the Palm Beaches
24/06/2024- The SpaceX Falcon Heavy, made up of the first three stages of the Falcon 9 rocket, could potentially be seen in Palm Beach County, weather permitting and depending on cloud cover.
- From Melbourne Beach to West Palm Beach, it is about 120 miles. To see a rocket launch in Palm Beach County is a special event.
When the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket launches from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center near Cape Canaveral, can Palm Beach County residents see it?
Possibly, people in West Palm Beach and Greenacres have reported seeing a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket take off (see video and photos below).
SpaceX’s mammoth Falcon Heavy rocket — more powerful than the space agency’s Falcon 9 — will potentially lift off this week. Depending on the weather, the Falcon Heavy should be visible from almost anywhere on the Space Coast and outlying areas, possibly hundreds of miles away.
Here’s more information about the rocket launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. If there are changes to the launch, this story will be updated.
Is there a departure today?Next SpaceX, NASA, ULA rocket launch schedule in Florida
Is there a missile launch from Florida? Next up is Tuesday, June 25: SpaceX Falcon Heavy GOES-U
What is the SpaceX Falcon Heavy?
Falcon Heavy is the first three stages of the Falcon 9 rocket – which together give three times the height. The Falcon 9 hub is fully loaded with the rocket’s second stage and payload. The payload, in this case the NOAA satellite, is wrapped in fairing to protect it on its way to space.
By comparison, the Falcon 9 that launches the Starlink missions is a single rocket. Just one of these single rockets is 229.6 meters high with the second stage and has a diameter of 12 feet.
With three of these Falcon 9 rockets, the monster Falcon Heavy stands at the same height. However, it is much wider, giving it a width of 39.9 feet, which is comparable to almost three cars parked bumper to bumper.
How big is the Falcon Heavy? How does the SpaceX Falcon Heavy compare to the Falcon 9 rockets?
The photo galleries attached to this story show scenes of SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket launch (morning, afternoon or night) from Florida’s Space Coast. From Melbourne Beach to West Palm Beach, it is about 120 miles.
The Falcon Heavy, which consists of three first stages of the Falcon 9 rocket, could potentially be seen outside the Space Coast, weather permitting and depending on cloud cover.
Will it rain today in Cape Canaveral, Florida? Will weather cancel SpaceX rocket launch?
Featured is the National Weather Service-Melbourne radar, which shows real-time conditions for the Space Coast and other parts of Florida.
Can you see a rocket launch from the Kennedy Space Center or Cape Canaveral, Florida, in West Palm Beach?
Weather permitting and depending on cloud cover, some rockets launching from Cape Canaveral or NASA’s Kennedy Space Center can be seen in Palm Beach County, Florida. Some examples include the launch of United Launch Alliance’s Delta IV Heavy rocket and SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket. “Heavy” indicates that rockets have three rocket first stages while a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has only one. Photos and videos from the Palm Beach Post and shared on social media show a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch visible in West Palm Beach — in some cases.
Video, tweets of SpaceX rocket launch near Cape Canaveral, discovered in West Palm Beach, South Florida
Photos, tweets of rocket launch seen in West Palm Beach, Florida
Sangalang is a lead digital producer for the USA TODAY-Florida Network. Follow him I tweet or Instagram at @byjensangalang. Support local journalism. Consider subscribing to a Florida newspaper.
